Clarion Shipping denies withholding cars

Clarion Shipping denies withholding cars

By Chiazo Ogbolu

Clarion Shipping West Africa Ltd., a bonded terminal in Lagos, has denied withholding cars belonging to members of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF).

The General Manager of the terminal, Mr Francis Okocha, debunked the allegation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Sunday.

Okocha said that the terminal did not know whether NAGAFF, as a body, had any consignment in the bonded terminal.

According to Okocha, if NAGAFF had, it had not approached Clarion to ask necessary questions.

“What I know is that sometime in July, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), through its Tariff and Trade Department in Abuja, sent us a list of about N480 million unpaid assessment by agencies.

“These agencies went to customs portal, assessed it and agreed to pay a certain amount of duty to the Federal Government through the NCS, and they used Clarion’s pay location to do that assessment, after which they refused to pay the duty.

“Customs wrote us and gave us numbers of those agencies that had assessed and refused to pay, and told Clarion to pay those amounts since its pay location was used.

“Clarion said, ‘No’, because the terminal cannot pay for something  it did not initiate.

“We neither know the importer nor the agent; but  Customs refused, saying that since our pay location was used, we should pay the amount,” he said.

Okocha said that the battle had been on since July, adding that last two weeks, after an intervention by the National Assembly,  customs told Clarion to pay N115 million out of the amount.

He said that customs insisted  that if the bonded terminal would not pay the  N115 million, it would not operate.

“ Clarion is struggling to pay. The place has been temporarily shut down, no new consignments have been brought in.

“What we are doing in Clarion is that all those agencies that have assessed and refused to pay, if they don’t go and pay what they  assessed, they will not be allowed to take their goods from the terminal.

“Most of them, who knew that what they did was wrong, had gone to pay and taken their goods.

“It means that anybody whose cars or goods are in Clarion now based on this scenario has not paid the  duty. This is the true position,” he said.

NAN reports that  the 100 Percent Compliance Team of NAGAFF led by Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko, had petitioned NCS over alleged illegal practices and conspiracy by Clarion Shipping.

According to group, Clarion Shipping illegally withheld 14 vehicles belonging to NAGAFF members.

The group said the vehicles had been trapped at the terminal since July in of spite full payment of import duty and other charges.

The group also accused Clarion Shipping of illegally releasing  19 containers without payment of demand notice amounting to N8.5 million.

It appealed to the Comptroller-General of Customs, to prevail on the management of Clarion Shipping to release the 14 vehicles.

The group also urged investigation into the alleged release of 19 containers.