Groups Condemn  Amendment of Shippers’ Council Act Bill

“We wish to state clearly that, globally the shippers are referenced as trade, financial exchange and transport INITIATORS whose acts and activities booster global transport activities and sustains economy of nations.

“The shipper has been tagged as the proverbial HEN THAT LAY THE GOLDEN EGGS IN TRANSPORTATION.”

He argued that whereas job creation thrives on shippers activities, both import and export, attempts to distort or disrupt it’s even trajectory will impede free flow of trade.

Giving a background history of the NSC and the journey to the number of policy recalibrations, he averred that some of the suggested changes in policy thrust have tended to serve narrow interests like the present proposal.

“Shippers Council in other West and Central African countries involves in cargo sharing, which is not the case in our dear Country, rather our Shippers Council takes care of Shippers’ interests.

“The Decree of 1978 was clearly focused on the protection of shippers interests in Nigeria. This decree today is represented as Nigerian Shippers Council Act ( Cap. 133 LFN 2004).

“Ten years after, in a further reactions  of the government, it evolved a National Shipping Policy Decree of 1987, which focused on the protection of ship owners interests in Nigeria.”

According to the group’s publicity head, whereas maritime stakeholders found the two decrees as complimentary and supplementary to each other, self serving interests sooner devised a strategy to upturn the trading dynamics.

“In 1988, the monopolists went shopping for a supplant of the Shippers Council Act, and a certain publication was sponsored and published in African Maritime Economist of October, 1988, where it canvassed that, “If the Nigerian Shippers Council decree of 1978 was the first legislative reactions of the Nigeria Government to the Code in Nigeria, then the National Shipping policy decree of 1987 has to be seen as a second reactions of government..invariably suggesting or stating in a subtle manner that, decree 1987 repeals decree 1978.

“Today, in 2024 ( 36 years after) the same armies of occupation (  aka agents of liberal economies)are tacitly propagating for a repeal of the Nigerian Shippers Council and by extension expressing their long bitterness cum mix feelings against the Nigeria shippers.

“The Maritime Advocacy Foundation , wishes to categorically state that, it will be against the spirit of *renewed hope* mantra of the present administration to create a Marine and Blue Economy Ministry out of the Transport Ministry without a corresponding  establishment to specifically protect the interest of the Nigerian Shippers in the whole transport industry.

“To say the least, the move to repeal the Nigerian Shippers Council Act ( Cap. 133 LFN 2004) is a deliberate insult.

“We therefore, call on the Honorable Ministers of transportation and marine & blue economy to boldly save the interests of our shippers who had over the years sustained job creation in the country in addition to their contributions in revenue generation for budgetary objectives.”

Listing the NSC primary function which includes he says provides for and protects the interests of  national shippers against   unfair trade, unfair competitions and bad business practices; Nweke noted that it would amount to a national disservice to sit on the fence whilst unscrupulous monopolists attempt to turn the tide via preposterous legislative arm twisting.

He laments that the NSC takes of helping  to maintain economic and trading stability, offering advisory and recommendations on informed trade realities and statistics to other relevant agencies will become history should the proposed repeal of it’s act succeeds.