By Cynthia Alo & Joshua Yousouph

CLEARING agents under the aegis of National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents, NCMDLCA, have petitioned the Presidency over attempts by the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, to limit entrance to the ports to holders of membership card of the Council for Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria, CRFFN.

This is even as the Council in another petition to the Presidency accused the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, of attempting to collect Practitioners Operating Fees, POF, illegally despite the court order stopping the collection.

National President of the Council, Lucky Eyis Amewiro, said that the attempt was in contravention of the Customs and Excise Management, CEMA, Act which empowers only licensed Customs agents to perform the function of processing documentation relating to import, export and manufacturing.

He noted that the law empowers only licensed Customs agents to perform the function of examination and clearance of goods in any port after being licensed by the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS.

On the CRFFN, he pointed out that the federal high court had earlier dissolved the governing council as at May 24, 2015 which upheld that, the tenure of the governing council expired on November 25, 2012 that the council had vacated office.

On the POF, the Council boss said that the collection is in contravention of the statues that established the CRFFN, the High Court ruling, the letter from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on the dissolved Council since November 2012 and a negation of the ease of doing business campaign of the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.