Shipping Act to Reduce Impunity in the Maritime Industry – House Committee

The House of Representatives Committee on Shipping Services and Allied Affairs said on Monday that the Nigeria Shipping and Ports Regulatory Agency Bill, once enacted, will curb arbitrary fees and other violations of law by operators of the domestic maritime industry.

Speaking to newsmen after the public hearing on the repeal of the Nigerian Freight Forwarders Council Act, the Chairman of the committee, Honorable Abdussamad Dasuki, explained that the committee was still collecting memorandums from various stakeholders on the bill before proceeding to present the report to the House of Representatives for third reading.

According to Hon. Abdussamad Dasuki: “We are still collecting notes. As you know, the next process is to present the report to the House of Representatives for consideration.

“Today’s public hearing demonstrated that every stakeholder in the Nigerian maritime industry wants an economic regulator for the industry. The era of impunity must end.

“There were no objections from anyone. The input from stakeholders was very useful and informative for us today.

“The bill seeks to repeal the law that prevents the Nigerian Freight Forwarders Council from enforcing presidential directives regarding economic regulation of ports. The Nigerian maritime industry has been late to adopt this solution and we will ensure its implementation.”

Also speaking at the hearing, the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, explained that the new bill, once entered into force, would establish a regulatory framework in the Nigerian maritime industry.

The Minister, represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Olorunola Olufemi, stated that “The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and the Blue Economy is willing to engage with all stakeholders in the sector, particularly the National Assembly, to enthrone the regulatory framework for the maritime sector and the Blue Economy industry.

“We therefore look forward to this and are very happy to be part of the process that will reform this sector.

“The Ministry is in the process of collecting comments on this draft bill and submitting it accordingly. We will encourage all stakeholders to also contribute to updating this process in the interest of the nation.”

In his own remark, the Executive Secretary/CEO of the NSC, Barrister Pius Akutah explained that the concerns raised by some stakeholders would be addressed and considered.

As the Head of the NSC said: “I am very impressed with the result of today’s Public Hearing. I am particularly grateful to my minister, the Minister of Maritime Affairs and the Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, for his support.

“This is also one of the key performance indicators that we signed with the Honorable Minister.

“For some of the concerns raised by some stakeholders, some of them are valid and will be considered in the future. We are not introducing laws that will strangle this sector. The intention is to restore sanity to the sector and ensure it thrives.”

A public hearing attended by the bill’s primary sponsor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Hon. Tajudeen Abass (represented by Hon. Sada Soli) was attended by stakeholders from the shipping, shipping, legal and maritime industries.

Also present were former NSC and NPA Managing Director, Adebayo Sarunmi and former NSC Executive Secretary, Barrister Hassan Bello