By Uzor Odigbo
There are strong indications that the Nigeria Customs Service lost whooping sum of N1.3tr in 2023 alone to waivers granted by the Buhari administration.
Comptroller General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi dropped this hint on Wednesday while fielding questions from the Senate Joint Committee scrutinising the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper.
To the amazement of the Senate Joint Committee members, he also disclosed that the Nigeria Customs Service does not have the details of the controversial Customs $3.2 billion modernisation contract awarded by the Buhari’s Federal Executive Council (FEC).
The Comptroller General who was represented by the Deputy Comptroller General, Mba Musa during the interface with the committee on revenue projections for 2024, 2025 and 2026 fiscal year, made the revelation when the chairman of the committee, Senator Sani Musa (APC Niger East), made inquiries to that effect.
FEC had in April 2023 approved the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) modernisation project, also known as e-customs, despite a court order restraining the federal government from going on with the initiative.
The administration of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, specifically approved the implementation of the Customs modernisation project to a concessionaire.
The concessionaire is Bergman Securities Consultant and suppliers limited as the project sponsor, Africa Finance Corporation UFC as lead financier while Huawei Technologies will be trained as lead technical service provider. However, stakeholders have knocked the project, saying it is to mortgage the future of the service and also inimical to national security.
Speaking on the modernisation project before the Senate joint panel, Mba told the lawmakers that the Nigeria Customs Service was not privy to details of modernisation agreement.
“We are not privy to details of modernisation agreement of the Nigeria Customs Modernisation Project,” Mba told the federal lawmakers.
He also declared that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) lost of N1.3 trn in 2023 due to waivers and concessions the President Buhari’s administration granted to investors.
He said NCS would have generated more revenue to the nation’s Consolidated Revenue Fund in 2023 if not because of the waivers and concessions arrangements.
Obviously not comfortable with the arrangement, Musa, the chairman of the Joint Committee said the Senate would commence investigation into granting of waivers and concesioning in the country
