Mbah has shown transformative leadership, governance with human face —Aniebo, RHGM zonal coordinator

• Says FG’s fiscal policies putting strain on maritime SMEs

By Dickson Okafor

South-East Zonal Coordinator of Renewed Hope Grassroots Movement (RHGM),Chief Elvis Chijiuba Aniebo, has reassured that the landmark achievements of Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah will earn him re-election in 2027.

Aniebo, who is the Vice President of the International Freight Forwarders Association (IFFA), and Patron of the Dynamic Youths Organisation of Nigeria (DYON), also acknowledged that the relationship between IFFA and the Nigeria Customs Service under the leadership of Comptroller General Adewale Adeniyi has been very cordial.

In this interview he speaks on these and related national issues.

Looking at Enugu State, what is your assessment of Governor Peter Mbah since he assumed office? 

It is without question that in the past three years or more, Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah has exhibited transformative leadership and given incontestable, high quality service and governance with a human face. He has been in active politics right from the era of former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani, when he served under him as the Chief of Staff and later as the Commissioner for Finance and Economic Development. On assumption of office three years ago, Mbah met Enugu State bearing a triple burden of economic stagnation, deepening insecurity, and infrastructural neglect. These challenges had accumulated across successive administrations. Yet, within three years in office, his administration transformed Enugu into a modern city. His tenure has been marked by notable achievements and his intentional leadership of putting Enugu State first has yielded unprecedented accomplishments in the past three years despite challenges. This has proven to be a governing philosophy through which every policy initiative, capital projects, and social intervention have been conceived and executed. From the list of projects, it is obvious that governance has not slowed down; visible projects are being completed, new ones are ongoing and lives are improving. Some of the commissioned and ongoing projects executed by the administration since taking over in May 2023 till date, include education reform in Enugu through the 267 Smart Green Schools initiative which is now functioning in the 260 electoral wards of the state. Governor Mbah has improved transport infrastructure through the mobility and connectivity programme tagged “State on the Move.” So, within his first three years in office, the governor has implemented sweeping reforms across infrastructure, education, security, and the economy. The landmark achievements under his “Tomorrow is Here” vision include the following core areas: ending the illegal Sit-at-home protests, establishing smart schools, expanding water access, and boosting internally generated revenue. So, that is why when he defected to the All Progressives Congress from the People Democratic Party, his political structure and business associates moved with him. Having secured the second term ticket of the APC, the people of Enugu State are not looking for his replacement in 2027. Rather his effective governance will earn him a second term in office.

 The promises made to Nigerians under the Renewed Hope Agenda have not materialized in the past three years of the Bola Tinubu administration. What justification does President Tinubu have to seek re-election in 2027?

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is God sent to Nigeria because if not Nigeria would have gone bankrupt. Before now we were eating our future resources in the name of fuel subsidy until Tinubu removed fuel subsidy. Tinubu did so out of political will, which his predecessors could not muster to stop the wasting of Nigeria’s resources through the fraudulent subsidy programme. Today, the reforms of this administration under the Renewed Hope Agenda are yielding results. Our foreign reserves stood at US$3.9 billion when President Tinubu assumed power. Today, it hovers around US$50 billion dollars. He did this through uncommon ingenuity. You queued to buy subsidized fuel before the present administration came to power or do you think it is too early to eradicate that painful regime of queuing for a whole day to buy fuel? If Dangote gets his dollars today at N1300, I would get it at the same rate as him. You can see the beauty of floating our currency. For close to two years now, naira has not performed badly. Show me how many roads that were constructed 10 years ago that are still motorable. This is because they were poorly constructed with our money. Today, you see very good concrete roads springing up everywhere with the capacity to last 50 years. Let us leave politics aside and support the government. More importantly to us Ndigbo, President Tinubu created the South East Development Commission, which we have been agitating for since 1975. So far, President Tinubu has fulfilled his campaign promises to Nigerians through the reforms. Yes, Nigeria is passing through difficult times, but with unity and understanding we will overcome the challenges confronting the nation.

 But there are grievances because of the  imposition of candidates in the APC and other parties, with aggrieved contestants, who feel shortchanged are threatening to leave. Isn’t that an indication that people may not vote in 2027 if the issues are not fairly resolved?

Like I said earlier, there have always been reactions after every election by those who did not win because that is what makes it a contest. There are Appeal Committees set up by each political party to listen to the aggrieved aspirants and if need be cancel or uphold the result of the primaries conducted. So, I am not aware of any APC governor or candidates with automatic ticket because Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah of Enugu State went through primary and he won as APC governorship standard bearer for the 2027 election.

  What would you say is the effect of the economic policies of the Tinubu administration on the maritime industry, given the present exchange rate?

Actually, since I was born and I’m getting old, I have never seen the present exchange rate of the Naira to dollar and other foreign currencies. It had never happened to my knowledge. If you take a look at the people, you will see that a lot of Nigerians have gone down physically and financially because of the economic situation of the country since the inception of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration. Where do I start? Is it every day increment of duties to clear the containers at the Apapa and Tin Can Island ports at the present rate of dollar? Because we use dollars to buy the vehicles and we also use dollars to clear them from the ports. So, the exchange rate has affected the maritime industry and businesses in Nigeria. Things are no longer the way it used to be because most clearing agents can no longer put food on the table of their families. So many people have gone down with stroke and many have died leaving their families behind, but with the ongoing reforms under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration things are getting better. Because I know Tinubu very well and he is a good man. Nigeria is a great country and well-favoured by God and it has been given to Tinubu to govern. Therefore, what past leaders failed to do is what President Tinubu is doing by the help of God in order to properly manage the numerous natural resources in Nigeria and better the lives of the citizens.

 What has been the tone of the relationship between freight forwarders and the Nigerian Customs Service under Comptroller General of Nigeria Customs, Adewale Adeniyi?

The relationship since the appointment of Adewale Adeniyi as the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service by President Bola Tinubu has been cordial. The problem is that when we ask them why the duty to clear goods in the sea ports is very high. They will say it is as a result of the increment in the cost of clearing containers from the Ministry of Finance. Meanwhile, the relationship of the freight forwarders is cordial.

 Has tax reform helped to reduce the cost of imported goods to the benefits of the citizens?

No doubt, Nigeria’s 2026 Fiscal Policy Measures and Tax Act reforms have significantly reduced import duties on essential foods and vehicles, streamlined input VAT recovery, and introduced new excise and environmental levies. These changes are intended to curb inflation, lower business production costs, and stimulate local manufacturing. The key effects on imported goods just to mention a few include: lowered import tariffs hence the maximum tariff for fully built passenger vehicles has been slashed from 70 percent to 40 percent; bulk rice import duties dropped from 70 per cent to 47.5 percent while raw cane sugar and crude palm oil tariff have also been significantly reduced. The Tax reform has zero duties on machinery such as agricultural, manufacturing, and cargo ships, railway locomotives, and essential medical equipment have been reduced to 0 percent to lower investment and production costs for local businesses and others.

    But many won’t agree with this given the high cost of goods in the country, how has the Nigerian Customs policy affected the freight forwarding sector?

It is a known fact that Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) policies heavily dictate the freight forwarding sector thereby causing major friction. Its key impacts include soaring operational costs because of massive licensing fee hikes, revenue losses from rigid border vehicle import bans, processing delays caused by systems ICT failures and manual inspections. So, the importer will like to make profit in order to stay in business. Notwithstanding, the relationship between the NCS and the freight forwarding sector is highly dynamic and fraught with challenges. However, another great challenge is skyrocketing operational costs and fees. Customs policies have triggered sharp increases in the financial requirements needed to operate as an agent. Again, introduction of sweeping regulatory reforms caused massive hikes in agency licensing. Also, licence renewals, and bonded terminal fees put severe financial strain on small-to-medium freight forwarders. And agents are frequently penalized with steep debit notes for duty avoidance, thereby straining operational capital. The challenges include ICT inefficiencies and clearing delays, impact of prohibitions and border closures, and surcharges, and exchange rate volatility.