The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) says more than 2,000 trucks laden with goods are trapped at the Nigerian land borders.
The National President of ANLCA, Mr Tony Nwabunike, made the disclosure at a media briefing in Lagos.
According to him, the ongoing land border closure had brought some gains to the country but should be reviewed for the benefit of legitimate importers.
“Six months into the Seme Border closure which commenced on Aug. 20, 2019, the Federal Government keeps saying it will reopen the border soon.
“The present situation of goods now at the Seme Border is very sad; something should be done to reduce the suffering of importers of these goods,” Nwabunike said.
According to him, some of the imported goods have decayed and attracted maggots.
He said that the goods had been under harsh weather.
Nwabunike urged that the borders should not be permanently closed, adding importers had lost huge amounts of money to the closure.
He appealed the Federal Government to urgently review the situation and allow dutiable goods from the affected neighbouring countries to come in.
Nwabunike said that the approach would save many businesses from dying and ameliorate the indebtedness that many genuine businessmen and women found themselves in due to the border closure.
He noted that the border closure had led to port congestion due to the fact that the facilities at the port were not adequate for the huge traffic.
“Our members are besieging us at the secretariat with the numerous problems they face due to the border closure and problems at the port.
“Some of the issues have to do with traffic gridlock due to bad access roads, lack of scanners, multiple units of government agencies in and around the ports,” Nwabunike said.
He urged government to dredge the Calabar and Warri ports for effective diversion of ships to the ports.
