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How burning of textiles have impoverished importers
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Federal Government’s decision to ban over 46 items under the prohibition list is not a bad idea as different nations all over the world are obliged to protect their industries against unhealthy foreign competition.
But the major concern of Nigerians is whether the country produces these commodities in commercial quantity, at least to take adequate care of the country’s teeming population.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has at regular intervals, made public goods that are considered contraband. Traders who have found their means of livelihood in such commodities have continued to wonder why the Federal Government should place such outright ban on the consignments.
A good example of such commodities which have generated a lot of controversy is ban on the importation of textile materials.
In fact, in the last four years, the Federal Government has burnt textile materials worth over five billion naira in an effort to implement its fiscal policy on banned items. But the questions stakeholders have been asking is what the economic benefit of burning these items is.
Does it add to the well- being of the people? Of course not. Rather it has impoverished Nigerians.
Baring his mind on the burning of textile, the comptroller-general of Customs, Jacob Gyang Buba, disassociated himself from the exercise, stressing that their function was to implement the policy of the Federal Government.
He regretted that Nigeria was burning commodities it does not produce, explaining that government had made laws and it must be obeyed. Buba said some importers had been in the smuggling business for years and were finding it difficult to change to another type of trade, irrespective of government’s prohibition order. The Customs boss explained that some people had seen smuggling all their live and could not do without it.
He therefore called on importers to trade on unprohibited goods to prevent government from burning their hard-earned income.
So many traders have been asking for the rationale behind burning of textiles since local industries are virtually out of operation.
The answer has always been that government wants to protect the local industries from extinction, and also provide employment opportunities for Nigeria.
On the contrary, the local industries which the government is said to be protecting have closed down due to high cost of raw materials to work with, coupled with inadequate financial muscles to maintain the heavy equipment they are using for production and lack of an enabling environment.
Most of the textile companies cannot run generating sets consistently for a week because of their weak financial base.
At present, over 20 factories have closed down, while over 200,000 staff of the companies have been relieved of their means of livelihood.
The companies which government is trying to protect are neither functional nor are they producing anything of standard to take care of the local people, let alone competing at the international markets.
Unfortunately, the Ministry of Finance which is responsible for the formulation of import and export laws and guidelines is made up of civil servants who know little about practical trade.
Also, most of the decisions guiding what goods to be banned or allowed into the country are taken without due consultation with stakeholders who are deeply involved in the trade. In most cases, traders get to know about any change in government policy only when it has been published in the national dailies.
As a result, so many importers have been caught unawares and their consignments impounded because they were not given adequate information. Sometimes, they get to know about the changes when their goods are already at the port for clearance, making it impossible for them to come forward to claim their cargoes. It is unfortunate that while government is celebrating the number of goods intercepted, either through approved or unapproved routes, somebody somewhere is lamenting huge loss of revenue borrowed from a financial institution.
One begins to wonder the economic benefit behind such crude ideas.
Are such policies actually worth implementing?
According to maritime experts it is important to note that Nigeria is an import-dependent nation. So, banning items like textile materials would certainly throw many people out of business, they stated.
They called on government to look for a way to support local industries, to enable them compete with other countries of the world
Cecelia Offor, a trader who deals with textile at Balogun market, said she had closed down five of her shops because a large number of her containers had been impounded. She therefore called on the Federal Government to give the ban on textile materials a human angle.
Maritime stakeholders are of the view that government should increase the duties payable on certain textile material rather than slamming a blanket ban. In such a way, government would also gain from the import duties.
But the major concern of Nigerians is whether the country produces these commodities in commercial quantity, at least to take adequate care of the country’s teeming population.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has at regular intervals, made public goods that are considered contraband. Traders who have found their means of livelihood in such commodities have continued to wonder why the Federal Government should place such outright ban on the consignments.
A good example of such commodities which have generated a lot of controversy is ban on the importation of textile materials.
In fact, in the last four years, the Federal Government has burnt textile materials worth over five billion naira in an effort to implement its fiscal policy on banned items. But the questions stakeholders have been asking is what the economic benefit of burning these items is.
Does it add to the well- being of the people? Of course not. Rather it has impoverished Nigerians.
Baring his mind on the burning of textile, the comptroller-general of Customs, Jacob Gyang Buba, disassociated himself from the exercise, stressing that their function was to implement the policy of the Federal Government.
He regretted that Nigeria was burning commodities it does not produce, explaining that government had made laws and it must be obeyed. Buba said some importers had been in the smuggling business for years and were finding it difficult to change to another type of trade, irrespective of government’s prohibition order. The Customs boss explained that some people had seen smuggling all their live and could not do without it.
He therefore called on importers to trade on unprohibited goods to prevent government from burning their hard-earned income.
So many traders have been asking for the rationale behind burning of textiles since local industries are virtually out of operation.
The answer has always been that government wants to protect the local industries from extinction, and also provide employment opportunities for Nigeria.
On the contrary, the local industries which the government is said to be protecting have closed down due to high cost of raw materials to work with, coupled with inadequate financial muscles to maintain the heavy equipment they are using for production and lack of an enabling environment.
Most of the textile companies cannot run generating sets consistently for a week because of their weak financial base.
At present, over 20 factories have closed down, while over 200,000 staff of the companies have been relieved of their means of livelihood.
The companies which government is trying to protect are neither functional nor are they producing anything of standard to take care of the local people, let alone competing at the international markets.
Unfortunately, the Ministry of Finance which is responsible for the formulation of import and export laws and guidelines is made up of civil servants who know little about practical trade.
Also, most of the decisions guiding what goods to be banned or allowed into the country are taken without due consultation with stakeholders who are deeply involved in the trade. In most cases, traders get to know about any change in government policy only when it has been published in the national dailies.
As a result, so many importers have been caught unawares and their consignments impounded because they were not given adequate information. Sometimes, they get to know about the changes when their goods are already at the port for clearance, making it impossible for them to come forward to claim their cargoes. It is unfortunate that while government is celebrating the number of goods intercepted, either through approved or unapproved routes, somebody somewhere is lamenting huge loss of revenue borrowed from a financial institution.
One begins to wonder the economic benefit behind such crude ideas.
Are such policies actually worth implementing?
According to maritime experts it is important to note that Nigeria is an import-dependent nation. So, banning items like textile materials would certainly throw many people out of business, they stated.
They called on government to look for a way to support local industries, to enable them compete with other countries of the world
Cecelia Offor, a trader who deals with textile at Balogun market, said she had closed down five of her shops because a large number of her containers had been impounded. She therefore called on the Federal Government to give the ban on textile materials a human angle.
Maritime stakeholders are of the view that government should increase the duties payable on certain textile material rather than slamming a blanket ban. In such a way, government would also gain from the import duties.
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