APFFLON cries to Finance Minister over inability of First Bank to process duty payments

The Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON) has cried to the Minister of Finance, Mr. Wale Edun, over the inability of First Bank of Nigeria to process customs duties as a result of system failure since September 1st, 2025, which, it said, has crippled cargo delivery and caused importers to incur huge demurrages running into several billions.

APFFLON lodged the complaint in a letter signed and addressed to the minister by its National President, Otunba Frank Ogunojemite. The letter was dated September 5, 2025.

The letter reads thus:
I write to you on behalf of the Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON) to urgently express our deep concern over the persistent system downtime experienced by First Bank of Nigeria, which has severely affected the ability of freight forwarders to process and pay Customs duties since September 1st, 2025.

This unfortunate situation has crippled port operations, delayed cargo clearance processes, and led to cascading financial losses running into billions of naira in demurrage and storage charges. Many of our members, and indeed the broader trading public, have been unable to access the bank’s payment platform, resulting in involuntary accumulation of charges, missed shipment deadlines, and disruption of supply chains.

Despite repeated complaints lodged at branch and regional levels, there has been no official communication, redress, or contingency plan offered by First Bank to mitigate the damages. The continued silence and inaction in the face of this nationwide failure of service is deeply concerning and unacceptable.

We respectfully call on your esteemed office to:
Launch an immediate inquiry into the root cause of the prolonged system failure by First Bank of Nigeria.

Direct the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure all designated duty collection banks are held accountable for service uptime, reliability, and responsiveness.

Facilitate engagement with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to explore alternative payment channels or temporary waivers to reduce the burden of demurrage on affected importers.

Hold First Bank financially liable for the economic damages incurred by businesses as a result of their failure to provide critical services.

The current situation not only undermines the Federal Government’s ease of doing business initiative but also inflicts avoidable pain on Nigerian businesses trying to remain afloat in a difficult economic environment.

We urge your swift and decisive intervention in this matter. APFFLON remains committed to supporting government efforts in trade facilitation, but we cannot overlook systemic failures that cripple our industry.