The Executive Secretary/CEO Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Hassan Bello has criticised the imposition of surcharges on Nigerian bound cargo because of non -existing security concerns along the Gulf of Guinea region. He criticised foreign carriers of mis-categorisation and exaggeration of security situation in the country to justify the surcharges unjustly levied on cargo destined to Nigeria.
Bello, said even though there were security challenges, it is not peculiar to Nigeria alone, saying many countries in the world were also witnessing same.
He was quoted in a statement to have pointed out that incidences like pilfering, armed robbery at sea, piracy and other infractions, “are not too frequent in our shores and is of less magnitude but our detractors will always magnify it to portray us in bad light.”
The Executive Secretary of Nigerian Shippers Council praised the collaboration between the Nigerian Navy, NIMASA and other relevant security agencies, “which to a large extent has reduced considerably such incidences in Nigerian water ways as statistics has shown that Nigerian Navy has foiled about 90 per cent of such incidence in our water ways.”
The statement disclosed that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, as the ports economic regulator had called for inter-agency collaboration to strengthen institutional capabilities that would create a seamless security architecture and provide a robust security in the maritime sector, thereby adding value to the economy.
