I had a lot to learn recently about our primal car and container Sea Port as a buyer using one of several offshore Car Auction websites. I discovered that Tin can island, home to one of Africa's largest seaport is also a massive crime scene superintended by our Customs and Clearing agents at the top and the ubiquitous urchins and Port rats at the bottom. Hopefully regular folks wanting to tread this path can do so with the benefit of informed judgement after reading.

My first negative experience was with port rats, I mean the one without the tail- the human kind. I had brought in a car through RORO on Sallaum line about a month ago. They wasted no time in breaking into the booth to remove amplifier and door handle pieces that cost me N150,000 to replace. In addition driver had to pay toll to urchins from cargo shed all the way to toll gate or risk losing a side mirror or more.

My second purchase saw me using consolidated containerized shipping. Big mistake. I saw first hand an efficient crime machinery that has importers and the Nigerian State at the receiving end. If you are naive enough to go through it thinking people's fear of the law will help you, think again because you are about to be shafted really badly. The Clearing agents will usually appear polite but they are as cold blooded as they come. They have a common code of non interference. Even if they want to be helpful to you (the enemy or cargo owner) it must be from the shadows. Active Connivance and collusion with Customs officers in their bid to undermine and outwit clients is rampant. Equally no less important is the role of the offshore Auction brokers that own the website.

I will say that the entire tainted enterprise that is Car/container clearing today is multifaceted and will require a paid thorough investigation for a true 3 dimensional view but I will focus on one only - Customs Compromise List for imported vehicles.

Normally duties are calculated on the basis of actual value of an import. Trust Nigerians, they collude with exporters to under value imports for a lesser duty charge. Of course the Customs won't have it. So, Aided by market survey, it arrived at what it calls Statistical value of vehicles based on make, model and year of manufacture. For this reason two cars of the same year but different make may have vastly different values upon which duty is calculated or determined.....

.......For example a full body sedan like Lexus LS 460 2010 is valued on Custom's compromise list at N2,600,000 when multiplied by 35% (approved duty rate), this comes to N910,000. This is regarded as its Surface Duty. Another 38% of this gives you vat and other charges. In the end the net Customs duty payable on this vehicle comes to about N1.255m. The amount is steep. Most cars of the same year come in at a little more than half this calculated duty.

The problem is that the Customs Compromise List is not available for all to see. It is treated as a confidential document. You will not find it in any Customs outlet as It is a closely guided secret between Customs and clearing agents. Therefore, 3 different clearing agents will give you 3 different Customs Duties on the same vehicle, so you begin to negotiate. This lack of transparency is what fuels the ongoing corruption with respect to Customs Duty valuation and payments at the Port.

Inorder to further obfuscate, opacify, liberalise and deepen the scope of irregularity, the Customs has what I call a Super compromise list. This particular list is in US dollars never mind that our currency remains the naira. It would seem that it was designed purposely to swindle especially the uninformed high end importer.

Remember the Lexus 2010 LS 460 valued on the above list at N2.6m. On the super compromise list it is valued at $29,000. If you multiply this by 35% you will get about $10,150. A further 38% of $10,150 for taxes and charges brings net Customs Duty to about $14,000 or N5.6m. Add this amount to car value on this super compromise list, you have an arrival cost of a 2010 Lexus LS 460 at over N20,000,000 assuming shipping line is rendering you free service because you are a true child of God. The Nigerian market value of this vehicle by the way is no more than N5-6m.
......

Sometimes, I don't blame smugglers at all

We are our problem...

adadike:
Sometimes, I don't blame smugglers at all

baby girl I love you so much

zoeA:
We are our problem...

True talk

adadike:
Sometimes, I don't blame smugglers at all

Too many bad people in positions of Authority
and opportunity. Apparently Seun and his moderators are not interested in seeing the end of this article.

The problem with us Nigerians is that the moment we break free of the Poverty trap that is Nigeria we are not interested in making this place we call home a better place. It is for this reason caucasians (white people) will continue to excel and lord it over blacks

Whatever happened to writing in simple English? Such a verbose post would have made for an interesting read, if the words were simpler.

HRSweetness:
Whatever happened to writing in simple English? Such a verbose post would have made for an interesting read, if the words were simpler.

The write up is a summary of my experience meant to help importers and perhaps policy makers and operators. It isn't meant for everyone. Even if I chose to share in pidgin or vernacular there are still some that won't understand.

Perhaps HRsweetness was on her way to romance section and she accidented on this thread. For the benefit of those concerned I will attempt to conclude this without concerns about being interrupted but Seun or his moderators

FP material

moriss33:
FP material

A lot of people are suffering extortion in the hands of clearing agents and customs daily. All the posts deleted on this thread are accounts of my personal experience which either seun or his moderator is determined won't get out. Too bad.

Seun and the moderators will not let this make frontpage. Irrelevant, uneducating topics are given attention more.