The Chairman of Dock Management Nigeria Ltd, Alhaji Moshood Salvador,  said government could get N4.6 trillion revenue through the Customs duties and ports charges.

Salvador told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, that if Federal Government could make port tariffs competitive, it would achieve the revenue projections in the 2014 budget.

According to him, if the tariffs were competitively regulated, vessels would not be diverted to other West African countries and the aim of the port tariffs was to reduce smuggling.

"If NPA (Nigeria Ports Authority) can come up and say that the budgetary allocation for stevedoring company for one year finished within five or  six months, it simply means the importation had doubled for last year.

"In spite of all these diversions to the neighbouring countries, doubled importation is from the local importers.

"What about the foreign companies that are bringing their consignments to Nigeria?

"If we now advise the Federal Government to look into the tariff and make it very competitive all these Ghana, Togo, will never get anybody coming there because we have the best ports and equipment.

"Review tariff and make it competitive, it will reduce diversion seriously."

Salvador also said that NPA was yet to pay the stevedores in the past eight months.

He said that the NPA's explanation was that it had spent beyond the budgetary allocation for stevedores within five to six months in 2013.

But, the stevedores  showed that the volume of cargo handled by Nigerian ports in 2013 had doubled when compared to the tonnage recorded in 2012 as a result of the port reform.

Salvador said that the stevedores were optimistic that NPA would pay based on several meetings with the labour union, the stevedoring association and the tally clerks.

He expressed optimism that imports, which appeared to be doubled in 2013, might grow four times in 2014, in comparison with the tonnage recorded in 2012.

He said that it was illegal for terminal operators to register dock workers and also employ those workers.

Salvador said that the NPA and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) had made such situation clear to the terminal operators.