General News
Maritime Industry Benefits Most in e-Payment Regime-Shittu
Prince Olayiwola Shittu, president, National Presidency of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) is a patriot. As the head of the oldest and biggest body of clearing and forwarding practitioners in Nigeria, he promotes growth, unity and stability of the association. Shittu is a known team player and has the mission of transforming ANLCA into a highly respected trade association where members will enjoy the economic benefits of association. He spoke to Peter Ugwu on a number issues.
Professional Ports Reform Committee is Waste of Money
Whoever said that is not informed. It is disheartening that committees set up by the Federal Government have always been seen as avenues for people to make money; where people are lodged in hotels, special project vehicles, gallivanting around with allowances, all in the name that they are working for the government.
However, the professional ports reform committee (PPRC) is unique that is why I am happy to be part of it.
First of all, no allowance is paid to any member of the committee by the government; government is not responsible for our seating and the committee is made up of gurus from creditable companies and organizations.
We are talking about managing directors and chief executives of companies like Julius Berger, Zinox computers, Omatek Computers, Coscarish, Emzor, among others.
The committee was set up as a result of the retreat the federal government organized on the state of the economy where people complained about the problems at the ports. So, the essence of the committee is to enable those who do this importation map out strategies to address the challenges, particularly the much touted 48 hours. And the committee has been meeting without the government spending a kobo; so how can it be a waste of resources? I must state clearly that the committee has succeeded in creating consciousness in the minds of government officials on s of time to me.
Sustainability and Achievements of the Committee
That is where a lot of people fail it. The committee is not a taskforce per se. It is a technical one, given to brainstorming.
We look at scenarios. During sections we examine issues like ports administration-how long it takes to clear goods. Ok, why should it take such long?
What are the impediments? How can we improve the system?
We want to have practicable steps to solve these problems. And finally we have come up with what we call five smart steps to cargo clearance; though not yet experimented, because we want to get views of stakeholders in the industry. We are exposing them to what the scheme entails, getting their criticisms.
These are things not done over-night. And when government set up this committee it was without a life span. They said until we achieve 48 hours clearance. Now what people do not understand is that apart from this committee on ports reform, we have another one on decongestion of the ports, though headed by the same chairman. So, when that committee does anything they attribute it to presidential ports reform committee.
For instance, the intervention into the issue of empty containers, etc, yes, the port reform committee also views it as part of impediments to cargo clearance, but the implementation is carried out by the taskforce responsible for transferring empty containers to Ikorodu. So, people do not understand what is going on. In the maritime industry today, government has nothing less than 10 committees mandated to achieve one thing or the other. We spend our time and resource nevertheless; with accruable results we are happy doing that, because this country belongs to all of us.
Workability of 48 Hour Cargo Clearing Target
We have just designed five smart steps to cargo clearance. If implemented, one can carry his cargo within 12 hours.
Because people distort cargo clearance to mean that it takes Customs 21 days to release cargo. That is not right. There are a lot of activities surrounding cargo clearance. Customs can release to you within 12 hours if your clearances and declarations are genuine; that is for fast-track cargoes, but what about shipping companies, other agencies, and man-made bottlenecks being created along the line? So, we are trying to harmonize the ports system. The new smart system takes care of these problems right from the time an imports dreams bringing in a consignment-what steps he must take to ensure the 48 hours is realized, because if the documentation is faulty, it will delay your cargo. We will soon bring for public approval, and we are not focusing on others that would want to put spanner on the wheels. Definitely, people who are benefiting from the present state of the ports are not yielding to change. We believe that when the process must have been legalized, everybody will fall in line that is why we are not deterred.
Truck Terminals
Now that government is removing hands from enterprises including the concessioning of ports, how do we expect it to use money that could have been plugged into repairing of roads in building truck terminals?
I can tell you that the Terminal Operators Association (TOA) led by Remi is doing a fantastic job. People are overlooking some areas of the economy as if they are not important.
Banks can come and finance such projects on a long term basis, because they are the same transporters that will pay the money. But the problem is that Nigerian banks want quick returns on investment. Therefore, government can come-in my guaranteeing the payment. Of course that does not mean that they (terminal operators) should not strive to meet up with banks’ expected standards. The maritime industry has been so neglected over the years. Bank of Industry does not really have time for the sector which prompted some stakeholders to seek the establishment of Maritime Bank. Those who developed the ports lacked foresight about the sector and the country at large. The areas given out for oil instillations were supposed to serve as truck terminals today. They forgot that ports are not built around settlements; rather settlements are built around ports. And what good government does is that no building is allowed around ports for future expansion. So, if you are now looking for a place to adequately take care of the trucks, you can imagine number of property that will be destroyed. And relocation of those tank farms is not easy, it will cause if not more than the amount used to build them.
ANCLA’s Six Cardinal Points
By now we would have achieved so much, but for sponsorship. Nobody funds ANLCA even most government agencies with funds for capacity building are not looking at this sector as important. And yet we occupy very vintage positions in the maritime industry. For instance, we generate money from imports, customs collects the revenue, but without a back-flow. Customs have promised now that they are going to conduct training for us. We now know that CRFFN is meant for us. However, we have been conducting an in-house educational training for our members, because achieving the critical components of our vision is largely dependent on the awareness and competency of out members. We have been doing this quietly and it is beginning to impact on our members. To that effect, compliance level has gone up; revenue net of the customs is increasingly. On yearly basis, customs’ revenue targets are increasing, which implies that our people are contributing more. So the achievement is there. Even if the government fails to recognize this, just like the proverbial lizard, we will nod our heads for ourselves.
Multi-purpose Biometric Cards
It is already being distributed. And the difference is that is not meant for every Tom, Dick and Harry to collect it. You must belong to the association, and that is by belonging to a corporate body, because no operation is conducted in the ports by individuals. And those bodies must have been licensed by the customs to handle cargo clearance. But you don’t need a license to be a contractor to NIMASA, NPA, but if you must handle cargo clearance, you must belong to a company licensed by Customs. So, the biometric card is for our members and staff. So far, we have issued not less that 2000 and we have about 3000 to finish.
Return Agencies to Ports and Call of Customs to Order
I was misquoted on that issue; there is no how I will say they should call customs to order. Customs is not responsible for the activities of order government agencies. We received complaints that one controller of Customs had been inviting the booted out agencies to permanently stay in the ports against government directive and the CAC said there was nothing like that. He said that they are invited only when their attention are required. Now the issue of agencies-SON, NAFDAC, NDLEA, etc, what the presidential committee has succeeded in doing is make them remove their base station from the port, which is different from them visiting. It has even enabled the agencies to improve on their operations that turning the ports to bargaining points. Now, they use international collaborations to nip in the bud the importation of sub-standard, fake and adulterated products than chasing importers around. And that is how developed countries like America go about it. They don’t even allow such product get airlifted, they attach severe penalties to it. And we are taking care of that aspect in the five (5) smart steps, where goods will not be airlifted to Nigeria until certain conditions are met. I am happy that they now go to warehouses and make more seizures of smuggled goods, more than they were doing at the ports. I only implore them not to end there; there should be severe penalties to serve as deterrent. Government should have the political will.
48 Hour Cargo Clearing and Security Challenges
We have a number of challenges, but we in the Presidential Committee don’t believe in impossibilities, because it the fear of, oh! It is impossible, it cannot work; that led Nigeria to where some of these things are. It is just like the pre-GSM era. Many pessimists were like; Oh! We have power problem, how can this be done? Already the terminals have been doing 24 hours clearing. They work 24-hours on shift. What we are saying is what stops you from doing your examinations in the night when there is less pressure. Why do you load the trailers around 3:00am and let them come out around 5:00am when the road is free. Anybody who is hiding under the onus of insecurity is not ready to work, because we are now operating on e-transaction. Examinations can be done at any time and how many cargoes are you carrying at the same time. All we need to do is to be ready to do this work. Some people would ask; what if armed robbers attack me at night? Are we now saying that all armed robbers in Nigeria are stationed at the ports. You can even do your bank transaction through the biometric cards without waiting for banks to open. With the cashless economy and the biometric cards given to our members I am convinced that the maritime industry will heave a sigh of relief.
ICT Application in Maritime
It is inevitable, because we are can’t form an island in the global village phenomenon. And our association has been on the forefront in the maritime industry to impact ICT on our operations. We want paperless operations as the benefits are too many. It causes interface, creates room for transparency and a sure way to tackle corruption. You cannot take bribe from IT systems; the less people, the less corruption perpetuated. Life has become better for us in the industry with e-payment. We will continue to enhance our operations with ICT.
Rift Between ANCLA and Airport Authorities
The issue has been solved. Apparently, the little misunderstanding was borne out of communication gap, hasty reactions from our people and the inability of some people trusted with government regulations to recognize the relevance of other people. But through advocacies and enhanced communication, the issues were laid to rest. Our people needs conducive environment to carry out their operations, government needs revenue and the companies want their profits, so need to agree on the best modalities to achieve our individual aims under the ambiance of the law. You shouldn’t underrate people who contribute to your progress. However, presently the communication level has heightened.
By Tim Akano
Leo Stan Ekeh (LSE) is an extraordinary human being. He is extremely hardworking, hugely brave, and massively intelligent. He is a shrewd businessman but with a cathedral-size heart of butterfly
Leo Stan Ekeh
I’m a product of LSE’s generosity. But not only me, I am close enough to know. We are uncountable.
I was always with him after office hours in his office twenty years ago when he was constructing a church in his place of birth. He was so committed to details and beauty that when the church was roofed and he went for inspection and discovered some misalignment, he instructed the contractor to remove the roof and redo it, without minding the extra cost coming from his pocket.
There was this physically challenged fellow that LSE bought a car for, including a driver to make life easier for her.
During one of his birthday celebrations, he told me, Tim, I am not inviting my friends for any birthday party this year, all the money I would have used in buying expensive wine, I am donating everything to charity
LSE & I
He actually looked for me when I started New Horizons. He read my interview in the Vanguard news paper and asked his staff to look for me.
Prayer:
May each of us receive a telephone call before the end of 2025 that will change our life’s trajectory for good for ever in Jesus name, Amen.
I did.!
Our conversation on that fateful Friday went like this:
LSE: Tim, I read your interview in the newspaper. I would like us to meet.
Tim: You are our LEADER in the Technology ecosystem, Sir.
I can come to your house tomorrow Saturday morning for a breakfast.
LSE: Tim, that’s good, I will be expecting you by 8am tomorrow in my house.
By 8am the following day, I was in his massive, intimidating house.
As I entered the premises I said a simple prayer: The God Almighty who is blessing LSE, please Daddy God be kind to me also in my entrepreneurship journey Amen.
That day the breakfast meeting went well. He wanted to see the man behind the ambitious vision of transforming the ICT education in Nigeria.
He saw tomorrow!
1 LSE First Intervention: Two years after I started my company, New Horizons, I ran out of cash, even to pay salary was a prayer item every 30th of the month. That was May, 2007 it remained just 72 hours for Heaven to fall on my head, metaphorically speaking, that is!
I needed N10M to stop HEAVEN FROM CRASHING ON MY HEAD!
Banks in Nigeria are irrelevant to Start-ups, except and until you START WALKING, Banks will not come to your assistance in Nigeria.
It is O.Y.O (On Your Own) for every Start-up. If you don’t have God 100% on your side, don’t dabble into entrepreneurship in Nigeria!
This is why over 80% of Start-ups failed in Nigeria. In America, it is about 50%.
LSE was in Abuja on this particular Thursday. I called him and requested to see him. He told me to come.
Our conversation went like this:
LSE: Tim, I know you are keeping well.
Tim: My chairman, I am strong in faith, but in reality, heaven is hot on my side o! I need help, Chairman.
LSE: What is the matter, Tim?
Tim: I need N10M soft loan to keep afloat. It is urgent, critical and time- bound.
LSE ok, Tim, see me on Monday (that meeting took place on a Thursday).
Tim: My chairman, I am not exaggerating the criticality of my situation. by Monday it would be too late because Heaven would crash on my head in another 72 hours without the N10M! And it would be all over.
LSE adjusted himself, he breathed in , he looked me straight in the eyes. I wouldn’t know what LSE saw in my eyes that day.
But he stood up, went to the inner room and he came out with his cheque book. He gave me an Access Bank cheque for N10M, which I later refunded 3 months later without interest.
I survived, heaven didn’t fall that day, glory be to God and thanks to LSE.
LSE intervention 2:
This time we had grown, having survived the ABIKU YEARS (The first 5 years of Start-up are the ABIKU YEARS, years of premature, sudden death. If you survive the first 5 years, your chances of living to celebrate your 20 years in business are bright). We did, all gratitude to God.
I got a business that required huge capital to execute- very big money, which was beyond my capacity.
I went to my destiny- helper again. He is never tired of seeing me. He picks my calls on the first ring. But I don’t abuse the access too. No frivolous conversations. No irrelevant calls. Every call is about matter and mission critical
This particular day LSE was looking extremely tired, having over flogged his body.
He told me he had been sleeping in the office for about 3 days, busy putting his papers together to enable him close a massive business deal, which he eventually got, after fighting like a lion whose cub was taken by a lone leopard!
LSE overwhelmed every opposition. He fought like Mohammed Alli, the world’s greatest boxer of all time. LSE won.
And that changed everything for him, too, forever. Fortune favours the Brave
Our conversation that day went like this:
LSE: Tim, congrats you are doing well, I can see. Indeed I instructed all my staff to make sure they read any article you published (“I felt flattered”).
Tim: Chairman, I need your help, KONGA is not ready to give me the products I needed on credit and I don’t have cash to pay and the client will not pay me until after 9 months.
Tough one, indeed.
LSE: Tim, I will be honest with you, there is no way KONGA would give you products worth N500M (10 years ago money!) on credit.
Indeed, we held a meeting on Monday over your matter, the resolution of the Zinox Group is that you must look for cash before you can get the products. Let me tell you, my staff made me to sign-off on our resolution that as the Chairman of Zinox , I, LSE will not go behind to do the opposite of what we all agreed to, and I signed. Tim, I am sorry, my hands are tied!
As of that time, some of the young people LSE helped disappointed him badly. So bad, some souls are ungrateful.
Tim: Chairman, I know some of the people you helped even went to the extent of wrongfully blackmailing you in the media. I know that for a fact.
But Chairman, I am different. I am Tim Akano, I won’t disappoint you.
I will remain eternally grateful if you can still think out- of -the box and help me out.
I added: Chairman, you recall you were the one who looked for me that you would give me a helping hand in life.
I think my last statement touched him.
LSE Tim, I will give you my personal cheque. Here is the cheque for you, take it to KONGA and pay for your goods to meet your deadline.
Tim On getting to KONGA, from my steps and tone, the staff knew something positive had happened.
I confidently presented my cheque to Loretta & Co, the lady managing our account in KONGA then
They were shell shocked that God pulled it through for me another time, using Leo Stan Ekeh.
There were many more positive interventions, which I will reserve for my memoir.
Lessons: The reason behind the rise and rise of Leo Stan Ekeh (LSE) has to do partly because of his massive generosity, most of them are done silently.
Yes, LSE is a shrewd businessman, but he has a heart of a butterfly.
2 LSE is unconquerable and himself and his lineage will remain so because of several lives he has impacted positively
3 We are all products of people’s generosity. No one is a self-made man. In my own corner, through the TIM AKANO FOUNDATION, I am giving back in thousands folds all the kindness I am enjoying from people like LSE & others. I’m not withholding any kindness from people who need it when it’s within my capacity. God saw my heart, too, that when he must have helped me to stand, I will light thousands of candles.
It was William Shakespeare who admonished his followers to tell him all the good things they wanted to tell him while he was still alive because tributes written in beautiful prose means nothing to a dead person.
I congratulate LSE children, they have a great father in and his legendary generosity will always speak for them up to the 4th generation., as the Holy Bible said. LSE children should be proud of their father, he is a Lion, an Eagle and a butterfly, (LEB) all together at the same time.
@LSE: Sir, if you manage to read this short public appreciation, which I was inspired to write in a wedding event (the couple is taking over one hour to come out, instead of joining people who are anxious, I decided to use my idle time to pay you this tribute today), I want you to feel proud of yourself; what you have achieved will take an average person 10 lifetimes to achieve.
Your positive numerous interventions in my entrepreneurship journey have germinated and I am also touching lives- like you- in thousands across Africa, not only in Nigeria, especially with regards to Youth Empowerment.
I am eternally grateful, my chairman, my destiny-helper.
My prayer for you my Chairman, LSE: The Lion, the Eagle, the Butterfly (LEB) is for God to keep you continuously in sound, divine health, peace and happiness- that you will still remain strong at 120 years of age like the Biblical Moses who miraculously escaped physical depreciation in his eyes, strength and mental magnitude.🙏
Gratitude!
Gratitude!!
Gratitude!!!
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has clinched three prestigious Service Compact with All Nigerians (SERVICOM) awards at the annual Ministry, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) Awards ceremony, earning acclaim for its outstanding citizen-centred service delivery.
NITDA
The honours spotlight NITDA’s leadership in digital transformation and efficient public service, as evaluated by SERVICOM on key benchmarks of timeliness, transparency, and customer satisfaction.
NITDA Director General, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, received a personal commendation plaque during the event, recognising his unwavering support and commitment to prioritising citizens in agency operations.
The agency also secured a Special Recognition Award from the SERVICOM Office, celebrating its sustained initiatives to bridge government and citizens through high-quality service delivery.
In a further mark of excellence, NITDA was named the 2nd Best Performing Public Service Unit (PSU) Team B within the competitive MDAs category.
SERVICOM Framework Drives Public Service Reforms
SERVICOM, established to enhance service quality across Nigerian public institutions, assesses MDAs based on rigorous standards that ensure responsiveness to public needs.
NITDA’s triple honours reflect its strategic focus on leveraging technology to streamline services, foster accountability, and promote inclusive digital governance.
The awards align with broader federal efforts to reposition public service delivery amid Nigeria’s push for digital economy growth.
NITDA’s Digital Leadership Under Spotlight
Since its establishment, NITDA has spearheaded national ICT policies, infrastructure development, and capacity building, positioning Nigeria as an emerging digital hub.
The agency’s SERVICOM success underscores effective implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (2020-2030), enhancing e-government services and citizen engagement.
Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi’s leadership has been pivotal in initiatives like the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics, alongside partnerships driving broadband expansion and cybersecurity.
These recognitions come amid NITDA’s ongoing campaigns for data localisation, digital skills training, and startup ecosystem support.
Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has secured enforceable compliance from Ikeja Electric Plc, leading to the unsealing of the electricity distributor’s headquarters after regulatory intervention over consumer rights violations.
Ikeja Electric
The Commission had sealed the company’s headquarters on December 11, 2025, following its failure to comply with a directive of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to unbundle a Maximum Demand account into 20 individual accounts for a customer who had remained without electricity for more than two and a half years.
Following the enforcement action, Ikeja Electric entered into a binding undertaking with the FCCPC, committing to resolve all consumer complaints referred to it by the Commission within agreed timelines.
The FCCPC warned that any breach of the undertaking would trigger renewed and escalated enforcement under the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA).
The Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the FCCPC, Mr. Tunji Bello, said the intervention underscores the Commission’s resolve to protect consumers and enforce regulatory decisions.
“Our responsibility is to ensure that consumers are treated fairly and that service providers comply with lawful decisions and directives. Enforcement is not an end in itself. Where compliance is achieved and credible commitments are made, the Commission will respond appropriately,” Bello said.
He added that the resolution reflects a firm but balanced regulatory approach.
“We intervene decisively where consumer harm persists, and we de-escalate where enforceable compliance is secured. What remains constant is our duty to protect consumers and uphold regulatory accountability,” he said.
The FCCPC said the outcome sends a clear signal that consumer rights violations will attract decisive regulatory action, while companies that demonstrate genuine compliance will receive proportionate responses.
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