Aniebonam cautions agents against use of personal companies for importers

Funso Olojo |

Customs Brokers have been charged not to use their private companies to engage the Customs in import or export transactions on behalf of their importers as this practice may back fire.

Boniface Aniebonam, the Founder of National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) gave the advice in Lagos against the backdrop of rampant cases of third party engagement with customs which have landed many clearing agents in trouble due to infractions committed by their principals.

“In the event of criminality in relation to declaration made for Customs purposes, it is only the freight forwarder that shall be liable for untrue declaration, arrest and prosecution in a law court because there may not be any evidence to link up the actual owner of the import or export goods.

“May we therefore advise that freight forwarders should be very careful in their documentation and engagement for Customs purposes. And for us in NAGAFF, we shall simply advise that freight forwarders should stop the use of their private companies to import and export goods for and on behalf of their principals”, he noted.

“And for the emphasis, may we draw the attention of all practicing freight forwarders to Sections 154 and 155 of the Customs law dwelling on matters of liability of the agents and that of the principals in all Customs engagement which includes Liability of Agents for Duty, etc.in section 154 which says that:

“Any person who acts as an agent of an importer, exporter or proprietor of goods shall be personally liable for the payment of any duties payable in respect of those goods and for the performance of all acts under the customs and excise laws in relation to those goods as though he were the importer, exporter or proprietor of those goods, as the case may be:

* Provided that —

(i)    the agent shall cease to be liable under this section after one year from the date any such duty became payable or any such act fell to be performed;

* (ii)    nothing in this section shall relieve the principal from any liability.

While section 155 which is on liability of Principals, states that:

“Any person who authorises an agent to act for him in relation to any goods for any of the purposes of the customs and excise laws shall be liable for the acts and declarations of his agent, and may accordingly be prosecuted for any offence against the customs and excise laws committed by the agent in respect of any such goods in the same manner as if he had himself committed the offence:

Provided that —

* (i)    in any prosecution for such offence it shall be a good defence for such person to prove that he had used due diligence to secure compliance with the provisions of the customs and excise laws, as the case may be, and the offence was committed without his consent, connivance or wilful default; and

* (ii)    nothing contained in this section shall relieve the agent from liability to prosecution for any offence under the customs and excise laws.

“From the foregoing a professional freight forwarder should realize that it shall become a double jeopardy wherein he or she assumes the position of shipper and that of the agent. And to the contrary the claim of ownership of transaction for Customs purposes is false-wherein in reality the freight forwarder is not the real shipper.

“In the event of criminality in relation to declaration made for Customs purposes, it is only the freight forwarder that shall be liable for untrue declaration, arrest and prosecution thereto in a law court because there may not be any evidence to link up the actual owner of the import or export goods.

“It is on record that in various contraventions of the Customs laws involving third party transactions with the Customs, the actual owners of the cargo are usually in denial of knowledge of such transactions.

“The freight forwarder is left alone to suffer the consequences of breaching the Customs laws. Going forward, all practitioners must ensure due diligence to secure compliance with the provisions of the extant Customs laws.

“Let us key into the ongoing Customs reforms for the good of our country and our profession. And for the avoidance of doubts the ugly experiences of practitioners at FOU’s, Customs Commands, Post Audit Units and indeed the various committee on PAAR enquiries are reference points the consequences of the subject matter under references.

“We can only earn our honour and respect before Government operatives when we obey laws and regulations governing international business in Nigeria”, the revered Stakeholder admonished, charging all NAGAFF members to show professional ability in the course of doing their legitimate transactions.

Aniebonam therefore enjoined freight forwarders to be wary of falling victim of this common practice to avoid the attendant unpalatable circumstances.