Another Group Identifies With CNFF, Says CRFFN Wobbling & Fumbling

BY GBOGBOWA GBOWA

The All Ports Unified Freight Forwarding Practitioners Association (APUFFRPA) has joined the Concerned Nigerian Registered Freight Forwarders (CNRFF) to urge the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) to put its act right and remain focused on its assigned roles.

According to the group, the CRFFN has not only failed to carry along registered freight forwarding associations which form the fulcrum of its essential corporate existence but has also failed to impact the freight forwarding industry as expected, but has rather been wobbling and fumbling, chasing after narrow considerations that does not impact the ordinary freight forwarders.

President of APUFFRPA, Chief Mike Okorie while commending the recent overview of the CRFFN and resolution that the council has failed to deliver, also accused the council of failing to process its registration after the payment of the required fee.

Chief Okorie urged the two administrative arms of the CRFFN to outgrow their respective narrow inclinations and focus on the growth of the industry and the development of freight forwarders capacity to participate optimally in the industry, in addition to addressing the myriads operational challenges in the port industry.

The group’s leader also expressed delight over the refusal of President Muhammadu Buhari to ascent to the reviewed customs and excise management act (CEMA), noting that the rejection will give room to addressing all issues he claimed were skewed against the interest of freight forwarders, even as he urged CRFFN to use the opportunity to properly articulate areas of conflicts that has put freight forwarders at a disadvantage, through quality and informed representation.

His words, “I am using this opportunity to thank CNRFF and the various representatives at its inaugural summit. They spoke the mind of all the freight forwarders because those at the helms of the affairs of CRFFN have only chased after their personal interests.

“While the council is fumbling and sleeping, the customs service and terminal operators are having a field day imposing all sorts of fees and charges on freight forwarders. Imagine if President Buhari did not reject the reviewed CEMA what our fate would have been. Instead of focusing on their primary tasks the governing council and management have been busy with projects that is immaterial to our collective good.”

“So we commend the CNRFF for coming out to tell the CRFFN to sit up, we identify with this call and it is our hope that both the governing council and management will put their house in order and concentrate on things that will benefit practitioners and improve freight forwarding practice.”

He continued: “Do you know that our group applied for registration more than four years ago? We applied and paid the registration fee, up till now, this people didn’t treat our application. They are there fighting for what would benefit them individually.

“Imagine if they cannot treat ordinary application of associations’ registration, which is their primary constituent, what else can they do? The CRFFN Act is clear about the place of registered freight forwarding associations, we are the primary focus, yet for four years they refused to treat our application.”