•Urges FG to wrestle barriers against export to strengthen Naira
By Steve Agbota, [email protected]
Chief Executive Officer of Wealthy Honey Nigeria Limited and former Acting National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Dr. Kayode Farinto, has said the lifting of restriction on importation of 43 items will positively impact clearance procedure at the nation’s Port.
He said the policy would enable people to declare properly whatever they imported into the country even as he urged the Federal Government to provide data of products valid for foreign exchange through Nigeria Customs Service.
In this interview with Daily Sun, he spoke on several other issues affecting the maritime industry. He also restated the need for the Federal Government to address barriers affecting exportation, stressing that dealing with the barriers will boost export and strengthen Naira.
What is your reaction on the lifting ban on 43 items banned from forex market Well, if you follow me, you will know that I’m one of the people advocating that CBN is encroaching on physical policy and that it does not have power to do what is doing. I commend the new Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, because when he came onboard, we told him that to succeed these 43 items under forex restriction are encouraging false declaration, and have reduced our import to about 30 per cent. Now, our import has dropped down seriously. We submit our position to him and I’m sure within his power, he pursued it. I commend him and few of us who actually pursued this issue to make sure that the issue of the 43 items is reversed. Going forward now, in the next 60 days, I want to see everybody declare whatever you’re carrying except you are perpetual smugglers. So, I also the few of us who have written, sent position papers to this new government. And I commend the CGC who has actually gone the extra mile to meet with the Finance Minister to make sure that this thing is reversed because it is also going to affect his job as the CGC of Customs.
Will this new policy on 43 items further create scarcity of forex?
How many Nigerian importers were able to access forex abinitio? We are making mistakes and that is why we are not getting it right. Some of the economic drivers of this country believe in their books. Whatever they have learnt in their books and they want to implement it and it is not like that. What government needs to do, any import that is not valid for forex exchange, you and I know that they don’t source for forex from the bank. They source for forex from the black market. We all know that. It is only very few commodities that are valid for foreign exchange where they will be remittances you can be talking of people sourcing for forex through CBN and CBN will only regulate and look at that particular item but this issue does not have any more to it. But instead of that, it is going to really affect our clearance procedure positively. It would impact it positively in the sense that you will be able to declare properly. I have a job I’m declaring now, artificial grass. The man sourced for his money from black market, he remitted the money and we were unable to open form M. We had about four to five weeks before we were able to open form M because you have to get an approval. For the four, five weeks we are talking about now, we already have new rate and shipping company is coming with new rate. So, the policy is going to really help our industry going forward. Talking about that all government needs to do is to look for data. Customs should give us data on those that valid for foreign exchange. How many people that have actually gotten the forex? How many of them have done their remittances? Because, we must also monitor this.
Before now, if you are bringing new tyres, you can’t declare new tyres because it is among the 43 items. And if you are bringing in new tyres, it depends on the size you are bringing in. Before I go to buy my new tryes whether truck tryes or commercial vehicle tyres, I have already know the rate of duty. I know whether it is legible or non-legible. And once I source my dollars and remit money, I should be able to open Form M. But before now, you can’t do that. Is either you call tryes another thing or you call it tube. This was actually encouraging false declaration. So it’s even going to be better for us in the industry. Talking about forex scarcity, market forces now determine what happens to our forex and it is better for us. Unlike on a Monday morning where somebody gets forex at an official rate, he’s not an importer, he’s not adding value to the economy of this country and he sells at black market rate. Those are the people killing the economy.
Some people have argued that one way to strengthen our currency is to increase our export. What is your take on this?
Yes, there must be balance of trade. That is it! Import and export, must be balanced. The country must export more to earn more foreign exchange.
We are not going back to square one. Everywhere in the whole world, there is what we called protectionism. That is where the government has an idea that if anything is produced locally here will have import adjustment tax on these commodities to protect the local manufacturers. That alone is a lot! If after the levy that is being slammed you still believe that if you import is better than the locally produced ones so be it. But let’s have an open system where anybody can have a field day and there is no barrier to trade. Before now, during the era of Buhari, we all know imported rice used to say but right now Nigerian produced rice is now better than imported ones. And the level of consumption and acceptability is higher on a yearly basis. Let there be competition. When there is fair competition and when you are importing and you now realised that the locally produced one is now having competition with your own and you cannot meet up, nobody will tell you to leave or what to do. That is how it ought to be in open market, not that you are now overprotecting. The people you are overprotecting, cannot really really protect them. In economic terms, whether you like it or not, it will be affecting the naira. Naira will becoming leaner everyday. You need to see the naira now.
Don’t you think that unscrupulous importers will take the advantage of this policy to flood our markets with unwholesome products?
We are making mistakes and I want us to correct that impression. For the fact that the government said they are lifting ban on the items does not mean that these people will have access to forex. But what it means is that you can open your Form M, source your dollars whenever you can. Unlike before, you are sourcing for dollars but you cannot open Form M. So that is what government is doing. Before government can release its forex to you, it must know what you are doing; there must be transaction between you and other parties. And there are always a third party banks where local banks here can remit money abroad. I’m not saying it is not possible totally but it will be for those who have access to CBN forex market. But for an average Nigerian, it is going to be very difficult because there are control measures, in the sense that there shouldn’t be barrier to trade. The issues of substandard and low quality products will now be for regulatory agencies to sit up like Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) now.
SON now, even the 43 unwholesome items are affecting them more because people bring in these products and they are unable to declare it. But now if I’m bringing in tyres, I have said it I’m bringing in tyres. All SON needs to do is to ensure that the tyres that I’m bringing in, is it a quality tyre or substandard tyres. It is going to even help them on their job in terms of regulation or regulatory agencies. So we shouldn’t see it like that. If all things being made equal, I just said something except you are a perpetual smugglers. Going forward, this is the best for us. We have been living in borrowed robes.
What is your assessment on Customs management in the last 100 days plus?
Yes, I want to say that this is the kind of Customs we have been actually yarning for. The professional, duly oriented one and a team that have rising through the rank not bringing in a soldier who does not know anything about Customs purposes or Customs administration to come and man Customs. You and I will agree with me we never hard it this so bad in the last 20 years. But in the last few months that the CGC has taking over, he has shown to the world and the nation that he’s a properly oriented Customs officer properly trained for the job and he has told everybody that care to listed that trade facilitation is one of his core mandates and these are the things I want him to dwell on.