Officer to have 5. Subject to the provisions of this Ordinance, the Chief The Chief Customs Officer shall have the general superintendence and con- Customs trol of the entire Customs Department of the Colony and supervision of Protectorate, with full power and authority at all times to carry the appointinto effect the laws relating to the Customs, and to trade and ment of officers, port, navigation, and the powers and authority of the Chief Customs &c. Officer and of all officers and other persons acting under his orders and authority, shall extend to and throughout all places within the Jurisdiction. (10 of 1876, s. 6.) Collectors to act for ports or Districts 6. Every officer appointed a Provincial Collector shall act for Provincial such port or district as may be assigned to him for that purpose, and shall in all matters connected with his duties in relation to the Customs correspond with, and be subject to the orders and assigned to directions of the Chief Customs Officer and the several subordinate them. officers of Customs shall, in all things relating to the execution of their duties, be subject to the authority, direction, and control of the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, or other superior officer, as the case may be, at the port or district to which such subordinate officers are respectively attached, and they shall respectively obey such orders and instructions as may be given to them Provided always that the Governor may make and issue orders for the guidance and government of the Chief Customs Officer, the Provincial Collector, and other officers of the Customs, and may annul or disallow any order issued by the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, or other officer of Customs. (10 of 1876, s. 7.) 7. Every District Commissioner shall be a Customs Officer for every port or place in his district to or at which no assignment has been made or is in force under Section 6 hereof. In absence, ment District 8. The several officers of Customs shall act for such ports or districts as may be assigned to them for that purpose, and shall for ports perform such duties as may be required of them by the Chief assigned Customs Officer or by the Provincial Collector at the particular to them. port or place at which any such officer may be stationed. (10 of 1876, s. 8.) officers. 9. The Chief Customs Officer as occasion shall arise for tem- Power to porary aid in the Customs, may appoint a person or persons to appoint act temporarily as out-door officer or officers, whose duty it shall temporary be to perform any and every out-door service connected with the Customs Department as he or they may be called upon to perform, and any Provincial Collector or other superior officer may also, in case of emergency, appoint a person or persons to act as out-door officer or officers within his district, and every person so appointed, as aforesaid, shall be subject to the liabilities, and possess and exercise the powers and authorities of an out-door officer. Subject to this provision, all appointments to any office or post in the Customs shall be made by the Governor. (10 of 1876, s. 9.) Officers not taking fee or authorized to be dismissed. Declaration on admission to office. 10. If any officer, clerk, or other person acting in any office or employment in or belonging to the Customs shall take or receive any fee, perquisite, gratuity, or reward, whether pecuniary or of any sort or description whatever, either directly or indirectly, from any person (not being a person duly appointed to some office in the Customs) for any service, act, duty, matter, or thing done or performed or omitted to be done or performed in the execution or discharge by him of any of the duties of his said office or employment on any account whatever, other than his salary or which is or shall be allowed by law or by any special order of the Governor, such officer, clerk, or other person so offending shall, on proof thereof to the satisfaction of the Governor, be dismissed from his office. (10 of 1876, s. 10.) 11. Every person who shall be appointed to any office or employment in Customs shall, on his admission thereto, in addition to any oath which may be required by law to be taken by him, make the following declaration before a Police Magistrate or District Commissioner, or some other person duly authorised to administer oaths : -: "I, A. B., do declare that I will be true and faithful in the execution, to the best of my knowledge and power, of the trust committed to my charge and inspection, in the service of the Customs of the Colony and Protectorate, and that I will not require, take, or receive any fee, perquisite, gratuity, or reward, whether pecuniary or of any sort or description whatever, either directly or indirectly, for any service, act, duty, matter, or thing done or performed, or omitted to be done or performed, in the execution or discharge of any of the duties of my office or employment on any account whatever, other than my salary or what is or shall be allowed me by law, or by any special order of the Governor." (10 of 1876, s. 11.) Power of 12. The Chief Customs Officer, with the approval of the Officer to regulate the method of Chief Customs Governor may regulate the method and form in which the books and accounts of the Customs Department shall be kept, and the form of all bonds, documents and papers necessary for the transkeeping books action of any business at the respective Custom Houses or places and accounts. or ports in Southern Nigeria and define the duties of the respective officers of the Department. (10 of 1876, s. 12.) Power of Officer to 13. The Chief Customs Officer, with the approval of the Chief Customs Governor may appoint the days and hours of general attendance appoint hours of the officers and persons in the service of the Customs at their of attendance, proper offices and places of employment, and may appoint the and divisions times during such hours at which any particular parts of the duties of any such officers and other persons shall be performed: Provided that nothing herein, or in any such appointment contained, shall extend or be construed to prevent the performance, of duties in those hours. or excuse the non-performance, of any duty which may devolve on any officer of the Customs, or which such officer may be called on, or required, by any superior of his Department to perform after or before the hours so appointed as aforesaid, or on days declared to be public holidays. (10 of 1876, s. 13.) As to the Fees to be paid for the Services of Customs Officers at service of 14. If the consignee of any vessel discharging or loading cargo, Fees to be or the importer or exporter of any goods, shall require the services paid where of any officer of Customs at an earlier or a later hour, or on any officers reother day than is appointed as aforesaid for the general attendance quired at of such officer at his office or place of employment, it shall be the extra hours. duty of such officer, on the order of the Chief Customs Officer, the Provincial Collector or other proper officer of Customs, to render the services required, and the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, or other proper officer of Customs, shall demand and receive from the person so requiring such service the fees payable under the next succeeding Section which shall be paid by him into the Treasury. Provided that when the services of any officer are so required, as aforesaid, on account of more than one consignee, importer or exporter, during the same period of time, the said fees for such period shall be paid pro rata by each consignee, importer or exporter, and that it shall be lawful for the Chief Customs Officer, with the approval of the Governor, to make such allowance for the remuneration of each officer for his extra services out of fees paid for the extra services of such officer as shall seem fit. 15. The Governor with the consent of the Legislative Council may, from time to time, by rules prescribe the fees payable:— (a) Under the preceding Section in respect of the services of the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, and other officers and persons in the service of the Customs for attendance on days and at times other than those appointed for general attendance. (b) In respect of the granting and attesting of documents required by masters, merchants and others in matters. relating to merchant shipping and the Customs. (c) In respect of the conveyance of the Provincial Collectors, and other officers of Customs whose services are required at a distance exceeding half a mile from a Customs station. (d) In respect of the sorting, separating, packing, and re-packing of any goods in a King's or other warehouse. (e) In respect of any permits granted under the provisions of this Ordinance. Power of Governor to prescribe fees. Power of Governor to appoint ports and quays and alter or annul same. Power of appoint stations and sufferance wharves and regulate discharge of cargo. (f) In respect of the unshipping, carrying, and landing of goods and bringing them to the proper place for examination and weighing, and removing to and placing them in the proper place of deposit, where the labour is required to be undertaken by the Customs Department. (g) In respect of any other special services rendered by officers of Customs; and (h) In respect of steamers lying alongside any Customs wharf. Until rules have been made under this Section, the rules set forth in Schedule A to this Ordinance shall be in force. The Governor, if he thinks fit, may remit any fee, or any part thereof, set forth in the rules in the said Schedule, or prescribed by rules under this Section. As to the appointment of ports, warehouses, sufferance wharves and landing stations. 16. The Governor in Council may by order appoint ports within the jurisdiction, and declare the limits of such ports, and appoint proper places within the same to be legal quays for the lading and unlading of goods, and declare the bounds and extent of any such quays, or annul the limits of any port or legal quay already appointed, or to be hereafter set out and appointed, and declare the same to be no longer a port or legal quay, or alter or vary the names, bounds, and limits thereof. (10 of 1876, s. 15, part.) 17. The Governor in Council may by order appoint stations or places for ships arriving at or departing from any port to bring to for the boarding or landing of officers of the Customs, and may also appoint places to be sufferance wharves for the lading and unlading of goods by sufferance in such cases, under such restrictions and in such manner as the Governor shall see fit, and may also direct at what particular part or parts of any roadstead, harbour, dock, quay, or other place in any port ships laden with any particular cargo shall moor and discharge such cargo, and the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, or other proper officer of Customs of any port may station officers on board any ship while within the Colonial or Protectorate waters. (10 of 1876, s. 16.) 17A. Until altered or added to, the places described in Schedule B to this Ordinance shall be ports within the meaning of this Section, and until the limits have been declared under this Section, the limits of the ports and boarding stations described in the said Schedule shall be the limits of such ports and boarding stations within the meaning of this Section, and all orders appointing places to be sufferance wharves and all directions as to mooring and discharging cargo in force at the commencement of this Ordinance, shall remain in force until altered or revoked in manner above provided. appoint ware 18. The Governor in Council may by order appoint any port to Power of be a warehousing port for the purposes of this Ordinance, and such Governor to port shall thereafter have and possess all the rights and privileges housing port. of a warehousing port until the appointment thereof be annulled by the Governor in Council. (10 of 1876, s. 17.) of warehouses 19.—(a) The Governor may by order approve and appoint ware- Appointment houses for the warehousing and securing of goods without payment and rules for of duty upon the first entry thereof, and all goods to be stored in them. such warehouses shall be stored in such manner as the Chief Customs Officer, Provincial Collector, or other proper officer of Customs shall direct; and the warehouses shall be locked and secured in such manner, and shall be opened and visited at such times only and in the presence of such officers and under such rules as the Chief Customs Officer shall direct; and all goods after being landed on importation, shall be carried to the warehouse, or shall, after being taken out of the warehouse for exportation, be carried or waterborne to be shipped under such rules as the Chief Customs Officer shall direct. (10 of 1876, s. 18.) houses. (b) If the Governor shall at any time revoke an order approving Revocation of a warehouse, the duties on all the warehoused goods therein shall appointment be paid, or the goods shall be exported, or removed to another of wareapproved warehouse within such time, not less than three months as the Chief Customs Officer shall direct. Notice in writing of revocation and of the directions of the Chief Customs Officer addressed to the proprietor or occupier of the warehouse and left thereat shall be deemed to be notice to all persons interested in the goods. (c) If any goods shall not be duly cleared or removed in conformity with this section, such goods shall be taken to a King's warehouse by the officers of Customs at the owner's expense and shall be liable to be sold for the same purposes, and in the same manner as goods detained under section 102 of this Ordinance. 20. Subject to the approval of the Governor, the Chief Customs Officer may require the warehouse keeper to take out an annual permit, and to pay a fee of 207., before any goods are stored in his warehouse. If any warehouse keeper shall store any goods or permit any goods to be stored in his warehouse before he has obtained a permit or after such permit has been revoked or has ceased to be in force, he shall be liable to a fine not exceeding 1007. Power to require wareto take out permits. house keepers 21. The Governor with the consent of the Legislative Council Rates of may, by rules, regulate the collection and fix the rates of rent storage for goods which shall be payable in respect of any goods deposited or deposited in secured in the Government warehouses in the Colony and Pro- King's waretectorate, and all such sums shall be paid, received, and houses to be appropriated as duties of Customs. fixed. Until such rules are made the rules and rates shown in |