The reason for the development is an unexplained Nigeria Customs Service’ interception at Onne Port (near Port Harcourt) of all shipments into the two free trade zones, which all have legislative Acts backing their establishment as free business zones.
BusinessDay reliably gathered in Calabar that in the last couple of weeks, there has been a lull in business activities at the Tinapa Free Trade Zone (TFTZ) and Calabar FTZ following a surprise imposition of import duties on goods coming into the two zones.
Checks revealed that not less than 826 containers arrive at Tinapa FTZ each year, whose hotel facility, Amber Tinapa, now pulls 90 percent occupancy daily.
It was gathered that the investment portfolio at the Calabar FTZ has touched more than N50 billion in its 12th year of operation.
This is, however, outside the General Electric’s (GE) incoming $1 billion (N160 billion) manufacturing and service facility whose construction was unveiled by President Goodluck Jonathan last June.
“The laws establishing free trade zones in the country stipulates that all containers (shipments) coming into the trade zones should be import-duty free,” said Nnamso Nyong, spokesperson for the over 18 investors at Tinapa FTZ.
Nyong said in Calabar that “the laws establishing Tinapa Free Trade Zone recognises the fact that duties should be free for goods coming into the zone; but unfortunately Nigerian Customs at Onne Port (near Port Harcourt) stopped the processing of investors’ consignments which are on transit to Tinapa.”
“The unilateral, illegal acts by the Customs at Onne Port in stopping Tinapa-bound consignments is against the spirit and letter of the gazetted law that set up Tinapa as a free trade zone,” Nyong stated.
He described the act by the Nigeria Customs Service as “serial impunity” with regards to trade transactions in Tinapa, saying, “It is a calculated attempt to truncate business activities within the free trade zone, thus rendering all human, material and financial resources invested in establishing the zone useless.”
Due to the development, Nyong said, “Tinapa investors have lost millions of naira because their goods are presently been held by Customs at Onne Port and this may cause us to pull-out of the zone.”
An official of the Calabar Free Trade Zone, who did not want his name in print, told BusinessDay that: “We are aware of the complaints from most of our investors and Tinapa management about the delay of their containers and goods in Onne Port. Our headquarters in Abuja is looking into that.”
Some free zone watchers have expressed worries that the Nigeria Customs Service’s surprise interception of cargoes meant for Calabar FTZ and Tinapa FTZ threatens GE’s $1 billion (N160 billion) manufacturing and service facility at the CFTZ, as the global conglomerate begins shipping in loads of containers of materials for its plant at the free zone.
The GE manufacturing and service facility, which ground breaking took place in June, is described by Jon Rice, GE’s global vice chairman, as one in two in the world, and would employ 2,300 workers.
Meanwhile, the Tinapa management has cried foul over the recent incessant NCS’ interception of cargoes meant for the free zone.
Paul Eko, Tinapa FTZ’s public relations officer, while speaking to some journalists in Calabar on Thursday on the gloomy picture of activities at the zone, also referred to as Africa’s premier business resort, said the management had discovered that “even when there are laws guiding its operations, the Customs are still harassing our tenants and frisking cargoes belonging to the Tinapa Free Trade Zone.”
0 comments:
Post a Comment