21102019 - BORDER CLOSURE:‘How neighbouring countries worked against Nigeria’

Vanguard, MONDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2019 — 35
Automobile dealers to sue Customs over
sealed garages
By Henry Ojelu &
Jane Echewodo
LAGOS — A group of
automobile dealers in
Lagos State, yesterday,
threatened to drag the
Nigerian Customs Service,
NCS, to court over the
unlawful sealing of their
business premises.
In a letter to the
Comptroller General of
Nigeria Customs Service,
through the law firm of
Ubani & Co, the group
condemned the September
30, 2019 raid and sealing
of their offices by customs
officers saying that the
action of the agency was a
demonstration of gross
irresponsibility,
unprecedented impunity
and abuse of power.
They maintained that all
the cars in their business
premises were duly cleared
and appropriate duties
paid to the federal
government.
The group, in the letter
forwarded to the Senate
President, Speaker of
House of Representatives
and Attorney General of the
Federation, also warned
that if their business
premises are not opened in
the next 14 days with a
compensation of N10billion
for businesses loss during
the period of closure, they
would have no other option
but to approach the court
for redress.
Part of the letter which
also serves as a pre-action
notice reads: “We must
state here with all sense of
responsibility and
patriotism that the action of
ABUJA—THE Federal
Inland Revenue
Service, FIRS, has
established a tax office
dedicated solely to the
administration of taxes for
Non-Resident Persons.
In a Public Notice
signed by the Executive
Chairman of FIRS, Tunde
Fowler said that FIRS has
identified non-resident
taxpayers as an important
segment of the tax-paying
public to devote to them
specialised attention.
Fowler said: “The
devotion of attention to this
Nigeria custom officers in
this regard is a
demonstration of gross
irresponsibility,
unprecedented impunity
and abuse of power.
“Though the Nigerian
Customs & Excise
Management Act gives you
the power to examine,
mark, seal and take account
of any goods …, In this
case, you did not examine,
mark, seal and take account
of the particular vehicles
identified as not being
properly cleared, but rather
sealed up the entire
premises without any form
of examination or
inspection of papers.
“No law under our law
books, including the
Customs & Excise
Management Act,
empowers you to take the
steps you have taken in the
manner you have taken it.
“The action of the
Nigerian Customs is not
only lawless but very
oppressive. The moment
when Federal Government
agencies elevate the pursuit
of revenue above the right
and welfare of the citizens,
Nigeria is doomed, but
God forbid that things
degenerate to that level."
FIRS sets up tax office for non-resident
segment of taxpayers is to
enhance tax certainty,
promote voluntary
compliance, reduce tax
disputes and avoid the
incidence of double
taxation.
”In view of the foregoing,
the FIRS hereby notify all
non-resident persons
operating in Nigeria and
the general public that:
Non-Resident Persons’ Tax
Office, NRPTO, which will
handle all tax affairs of nonresident
persons
(individuals or corporate)
has been established; The
NRPTO is located within
the International Tax
Department at FIRS
Building, Ikoyi, Lagos.
"As from 1st January 2020,
all non-resident persons
liable to tax in Nigeria shall
submit every return,
correspondence or inquiry
relating to all the taxes
administered by the
Service to the Non-
Resident Persons’ Tax
Office; and Tax files of nonresident
persons shall,
thenceforth, be domiciled at
the NRPTO.”
Employment slots scam: SERAP
tasks ICPC, EFCC to probe
Senate, MDAs
By Olasunkanmi
Akoni
LAGOS—THE Socio-
Economic Rights and
Accountability Project,
SERAP, yesterday, tasked
the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other
Related Offences
Commission, ICPC, and
Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission,
EFCC, to investigate
allegations that principal
officers and members of the
Nigerian Senate were
using their official positions
to get job slots from
government agencies for
personal interests.
SERAP also urged the
anti-corruption agencies to
“probe allegations that
some ministries,
departments and agencies
are selling the employment
slots at their disposal with
a single slot being sold for
as much as N1.5 million.”
SERAP, in a petition dated
October 18, 2019, by its
Deputy Director, Kolawole
Oluwadare, said: “This
alleged preferential
treatment in Nigerians’
access to government jobs
is a textbook case of
cronyism, patronage and
corruption.
“The public interests are
best served when public
employees are recruited
based on their skills,
competence and expertise
rather than as a reward for
political, social and other
similar connections.”
In the letter sent to ICPC
chairman Bolaji
Owasanoye and EFCC
Acting Chairman Ibrahim
Magu, SERAP said:
“Unless the allegations are
urgently investigated and
suspected perpetrators
brought to justice, the
effective and efficient
performance from the
public workforce,
competence in government
services and functioning of
Ministries, Departments
and Agencies will continue
to be negatively impacted.
“These allegations show
the face of public
recruitment in Nigeria in
recent decades, which has
typically been that of
political influence,
cronyism, patronage and
corruption."