The Federal Government (FG) has been called to immediately lift the ban on the sale of petroluem products in the border communities, as this amounts to shortchanging the Nigerians who reside in the enclaves.
The Federation of Informal Workers’ Organizations of Nigeria (FIWON) made the call Tuesday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, at a press conference, addressed by its General Secretary, Gbenga Komolafe.
Komolafe speaking against the backgrond of a recent survey conducted by the body among the border natives lamented that it was sad to note that the supply of grid electricity is particulrly very scant in these comunities, stating that what producers and working people in the informal sector are going through in the border communities without fuel to power generators which is the source of energy to drive the simple machines and equipment used by welders, hair dressers and barbers, corn and pepper grinders and everyone else at home to provide lighting, can best be imagined.
FIWON scribe who argued that the suffering people are Nigerians noted that when people bring in fuel from Owode to say Idi Iroko for domestic use, it is at a great risk, maitaing that this was unwarranted attack on people’s livlihoods in these difficult times!
Komolafe stated that the immediate recall of the vast array of security agencies whose personnel allegedly inflicted unnecessary harassment and extortion on poor working people, was enough for the Customs Service to have its checkpoitslimited to few entry points which are all well known and make cross border traders pay statutory duties and levies within the context of ECOWAS trade protocols.
He declared that the “primitive arms and truncheon welding, home and market raiding style of the Nigeria Customs Service must stop!”
“Technology deployment such as scanners at necessary entry points at the borders, to detect banned goods especially illegal arms and ammunition should enforced. It is a known fact that despite harsh policing of poor working people in the border communities, ‘big people’ people are still smuggling in banned goods including arms and ammunition while petroleumproducts are still shipped out, most often with escorts of the Customs and other security personnel.
“We call for the extant trade protocols especially withing the ECOWAS framework, to be respected and enforced while one stop tariff collection regime should be introduced. the Common External Tariff (CET) which supposedly took off in January 2015 and which allows for paying of a uniform tariff at all borders in the sub-region should be allowed to be implemented. It is one of the landmarks of ECOWAS.The faithful implementation of the Common External Tariff (CET)will lead to a trade boost across board and facilitate the implementation of the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS)” Komolafe stressed at the conference.
Komolafe appealed to the Ogun State government and Representatives of the border in the National Assembly (NASS) and Ogun State House of Assembly to urgently intervene on behalf of the suffering people of the border communities.
FIWON Secretary disclosed that among the group’s findings during the survey, was that despite the unusual presence of security personnel in their communities, a few ‘big people’ are still bringing in banned commodities such as rice in large scale while also ‘exporting’ huge quantity of petroleum products from Nigeria, sometimes with police and military accompaniment!
Another according to respondents Komolafe was the ubiquitous presence of wide array of uniformed, armed, truncheon wielding personnel of the Nigeria Police, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigeria Army, Vehicle Inspecting Office, Federal Road Safety Corps, Nigeria Immigration Service, Port Health, Security and Civil Defence, and others who mount barricades at intervals of less than 1km apart.
FIWON Secretary added the that from the group’s findings, Police reportedly take their tolls in small amounts and indiscriminately on the border routes, adding that the Nigeria Army personnel barricades often require drivers ‘…to be registered’.
Komolafe revealed that the respondents during the survey frontally demanded the authorities to put final stop to the killings of young people trying to earn their livelihoods at the border enclaves.
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