Inefficiency, waste and financial loss

So yesterday I posted a link to Charles Onyango-Obbo's positive piece on Nigeria. I will admit to you it felt good reading it. In fact, I sent Mr Onyango-Obbo an email thanking him for the piece, and he was kind enough to reply. Thanks again.

Today my mood is soured again.

The Guardian reports today a day's worth of crude oil exports is trapped at the terminals because (get this) no export license has been issued for the day's exports. Worse yet, it appears the reason for the delay in issuing the license is the Minister is out of the country, in the United States.

A source explained further that apart from the NNPC and the oil multinationals that would be liable to pay penalties for not being able to supply the crude to their customers, all the cargoes already programmed for today but could not lift crude would incur a demurrage of $50,000 per day and this amount would be paid by the corporation.

So we lose money, lose more money, and then ... well ... lose money.

Wow.

This is the contradiction of our land. On the one hand, boundless potential and entrepreneurial spirit, and on the other hand, unnecessary inefficiencies, distortions, limiting factors and stumbling blocks that keep us from thriving as we could and should.

When the Minister gets back from his holiday, and the license is issued, it will still be a while before export commences:

"If the minister signs the permit today, it is already 3.30 p.m., we cannot load any cargo for Wednesday because the document will take a process before getting to us .The Customs will be given such a permit which they will send to all their locations where crude export takes place", the source stated.

"The Customs will first certify the permit and thereafter circulate it to all their export terminal locations and that will take time," he stated.

Given that this is how we handle our number one export, it is perhaps not surprising that we still hear of ports congestion in Lagos (involving less important imports), decades after we first faced the issue in the 1970s. It has been three decades, so we have had enough time to work out strategies to minimize the problem, and to bring the strategies to fruition.

And please don't give me that "military rule" excuse. The same political, civil administrative and "technocratic experts" run the government under civilians and generals, and the same plutocrats dominate business and investment. These men and women have had their whole lives to think about these problems and ponder solutions to everything (particularly the electricity crisis) yet they continuously act as if it is the first time they have seen each of these problems, as if they have never thought about it before, as if they need time and resources to hold conferences, stakeholders meetings, seminars, overseas trips and whatever else .... only to still have no solution.

Haba.