‘Goods inspection delays causing losses’
PHOTO: AFP
Separate inspections of baggage by the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) and Customs authorities at airports have created hurdles in the way of export and import activities.
This concern was expressed by traders on Thursday during a visit of ANF Commandant Waqar Haider Rizvi to the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI).
Participants of the meeting asked questions about delay in examinations by the ANF, which caused losses on account of demurrage, detention and ungrounding charges.
They requested the ANF to enhance its workforce and resources, replace the obsolete scanners at ports with the latest ones and install more scanners.
Addressing their concerns, the ANF official said that ANF’s examination procedure could be expedited if it was given access to the WeBOC system, which was being requested for the last three years, but Customs authorities were reluctant to grant the access.
“Access to WeBOC will make things easier for us and lessen the problems being faced by the business community,” he said. “The business community should also demand that the authorities grant WeBOC access to the ANF as it will prove to be favourable for all the stakeholders.”
Referring to the inspections at airports, he said that the Customs department carried out the baggage inspection first while the ANF staff repeated the same exercise again, which annoyed passengers because they had to go through the same process twice.
In this regard, the ANF felt that it was necessary to request the Customs department to jointly carry out the examinations with ANF officials so that the hardships faced by passengers could be reduced. However, the Customs turned down the request, he told the businessmen.
Replying to concerns expressed by meeting participants over unavailability of ANF staff that often delayed the examination, he said that terminal operators and port authorities were unwilling to give a small office to the ANF, which was the basic reason for the delay.
“However, the ANF, with a workforce of just 3,000 personnel across Pakistan, is trying its best to deliver with the limited resources,” he said.
Responding to a participant’s concern related to poor repackaging that caused damage to the goods in transit, Rizvi called on all stakeholders including traders, port authorities, Customs and the ANF to discuss and resolve problems pertaining to repackaging after examination.
He highlighted that the ANF was cognisant of the hardships being faced by the importers and exporters due to delay in examination of goods and was trying its best to address their grievances by examining the minimum number of containers.
Rizvi suggested that the KCCI should appoint a focal person so that the issues faced by its members in dealing with the ANF could be resolved swiftly.
“Frequent interaction between the business community and the ANF will help address most of the issues,” he said, adding that the ANF carried out its activities for the betterment of Pakistan without any compromises.
Speaking on the occasion, KCCI President Shariq Vohra urged the ANF to focus on facilitating the business community because in many cases the force was accused of creating hurdles and delaying the clearance of goods.
“We are not against ANF activities because the department has a responsibility on its shoulders to intercept the influx of drugs and narcotics,” he said. “However, the pace of examination has to improve because any delay causes severe losses to the business community.”
According to him, stringent efforts are needed from all the stakeholders to make Pakistan a drugs-free state.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 12th, 2021.
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