Customs will go ahead with import duties payment – Controller-General Hameed Ali

The Controller-General of the Nigerian Customs, Colonel Hameed Ali (rtd) has disclosed that Customs will proceed with its planned verification of payment of duties on imported vehicles at the appropriate time.

The policy is currently on hold following the widespread outcry on account of its retroactive nature.

Recall that the Senate had summoned the Customs’ boss to explain the planned policy.

The policy allows Customs personnel to stop and impound any vehicle imported into the country over the last seven years for which no import duty has been paid.

The Senate, which is locked in a showdown with Ali over his refusal to appear before it in Customs uniform, passed a resolution asking the organization to stop the vehicle duty verification policy.

Ali said in an interview in Abuja on Friday that the policy is not all about the revenue it will generate for government, but also for security reasons

”We want to ensure that we capture virtually all vehicles and tie vehicles to ownership because of the criminal nature of things happening in this country.

“Somebody can pick your car and go and commit armed robbery or another offence because we do not have the data, we cannot trace the car to the owner. But if every car is tied to the owner, it would make crime detection easier.

“I can tell you today that there are cars on our streets that have not been registered and there are people with different number plates in their houses. They just attach the number plate on any car they decide to drive and zoom off. This is simply not right.

“For those of us who have lived in the United States of America, your plate number is your identity. Once they compute your plate number, everything about you will be reflected there. That is the position we want to be in this country.

“We are consulting and we want to get to that level. We just create the level that capturing the data will be easier for us. The issue of verification is necessary because of the security situation in the country.

“Also, there is the revenue aspect. You will not deny that we need all the legal money that we need in this country today. It is going to be tasking on us all, but the payment of dues in some country is necessary.

“We need to understand that some countries survive on tax. It is only in Nigeria that we shy away from paying our dues and people question why they should pay.”

He further explained that in enforcing the policy, “the Customs will not be as hard as people think.

“We are human beings. In fact, when the policy came up, I had to go back and look at my own cars to make sure that I am not driving a car that has the wrong papers, while I am expected to enforce the same law on violators.

“This is what we want people in Nigeria to begin to understand. Yes, we regret he hardship, but honestly, for us to be able to move forward in terms of our security, we must grow a level higher in this country. We cannot attain any level without hardship.

“It may tamper with our ways of doing things, but in the long run, we shall all be better for it. So for now, you know we have suspended the policy.

“We are asking for feedback, we will look at the policy and refine it and then we see how best we can apply it without causing hardship to Nigerians. So we have not put a date to it yet. We are still consulting. When we do, we will let Nigerians know.”

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Biafra war destroyed Nigerian civil service system – Obaseki

The Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, yesterday lamented that the outbreak of the civil war in 1967 disrupted the well-organized civil service system put in place by Britain.

The Governor charged civil servants in the state to key into the Integrated Financial Information System which will guarantee Electronic governance in all Ministries in the state.

Obaseki was speaking to Permanent Secretaries and Directors in the state civil service yesterday.While commending his predecessor, Adams Oshiomhole, whom he described as a courageous lion, for being the first governor to introduce the use of technology called the “oracle software in the payment system in the civil service”, Obaseki said his administration had provided one thousand computers and will provide internet facilities in all the offices so that every government dealings will be online.

He said, “What we are doing is to automate the process, we inherited the British administration system which was used to govern the entire world.

“It was that system that helped us build the economic, social and political foundation of this country. Nigeria worked because the civil service worked.

“What happened is that we had a civil war and most of those processes were disrupted. So when we say things are not working today, it is because the processes that we inherited in terms of how we manage the bureaucracy was disrupted. And it has been a challenge trying to bring back those processes.“The civil service worked because there were processes and systems that made it work.

“It is important to know that the money we are spending is tax payers’ money and we are only privileged to managed it, so we must be prudent about it.

“As a government, we want to make the job of the civil servants easy, that is why we want to run E-Government.

“If you close you don’t want to go home early you go there and they teach you. To make sure we run an E-Government, we just acquired a thousand computers, by the grace of God, we are going to complete bloc C this year, fence around the secretariat from the Ministry of Works Sapele Road to the High Court junction.“We must look for money next week and rebuild Training Center, where there will be mandatory training and voluntary training for civil servants.

“We will make sure we have wireless internets in all our offices. By the grace of God, by the time our power project is completed we will have 24 hours electricity in our offices.

“I come from a civil service family and I worked as a clerical officer at the age of 16, so I have idea of how the civil service works and I know that no government, no institution can progress without the civil service.

“But on your part understand that you cannot continue with the attitude of the past. To whom so much is given so much is expected. We want to run our government like an electronically based government.

“Before the end of my tenure, we will no longer use hard files, so that all actions will be online.”

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Assemblies of God: Paul Emeka’s move to “arrest” Supreme Court judgement suffers setback

A bid by former General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God Nigeria, Rev. Paul Emeka to stop the execution of the Supreme Court judgement against him suffered a major set-back on Friday in an Enugu High Court as the presiding judge disqualified himself from entertaining the matter.

It could be re-called that in a unanimous judgement, the Apex Court had on February 24, 2017 affirmed Emeka’s sack as the General Superintendent of the Church.

The suit has Rev. Prof. Paul Emeka, Rev. Ofodile Ekenedilichukwu and Rev. Emeka Eze as plaintiffs. Joined as defendants are the Nigerian Police and the commissioner of police Enugu State.However, in a move to stop the execution of the judgement, he returned to a High Court, seeking among other things an injunction restraining the Nigeria Police from executing the Supreme Court judgement.

In the fresh case filed before Justice R.N. Onuorah, with suit No E/101/2017, Emeka is seeking among other things “as order of interlocutory injunction restraining the defendants, either by themselves or their servants, agents, privies, assigns, subordinates or any person or persons, howsoever called from interfering in any way or manner howsoever with the claimants’ use of No R8 Ozubulu Street, Independence Layout, Enugu, Enugu State, being the claimants’ official offices, business premises and in particular restraining the defendants from sealing up the aforesaid premises and from disturbing, preventing and or denying the claimants and their staff and students access to the said No R8 Ozubulu Street, Independence Layout, Enugu, Enugu State to carry out their lawful duties and obligations as officers of the Assemblies of God, Nigeria pending the determination of the substantive suit.”

However, our correspondent, who was in court reports that shortly after the counsels for both parties announced their appearances, the Judge declined to hear the mater.

This is also as the legal team of the Assemblies of God Nigeria, led by Barr. Chika Ibekwe was in court with a motion to seek for joinder in the suit.

However, the motion was not heard, as the visibly furious Justice Onuorah expressed his anger over what he called undue pressure from the “high and the mighty” in the society over the suit.

He condemned a plot by some persons to exert undue influence on him in dispensing the matter, vowing that he would rather remain materially poor and spiritually wealthy than succumb to such gimmick.

Speaking to journalists after the court session, Ibekwe said the Church was not afraid of whatever tactics Emeka would employ in his failed bid to reclaim his former position.

“I understand that the judge has transferred the case file back to the Chief Judge. I don’t know the kind of pressure but he said he is under pressure.

“We are not yet party to that case but we applied to join.

“Paul Emeka has taken the Church to Supreme Court; now he has chosen to commence a fresh suit; we are not afraid of anything he wants to do as far as they are within the law.

“We don’t expect him to act outside the law but if he chooses to, we have total confidence on the police and security agencies to deal with him and put him in proper place”, he declared.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court judgement has already been executed few days ago.

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What Ndume will do for Senate to lift his suspension – Dino Melaye

Senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye, on Friday assured his counterpart from Borno South, Senator Ali Ndume that the Senate President, Bukola Saraki will reduce his punishment should he tender an apology to the Upper Legislative Chambers.

The Senate had earlier in the week suspended Ndume for six months over his call for the probe of Saraki and Melaye, who were later cleared of any wrongdoing.

The Borno Senator had raised a point of order during a recent plenary session, stressing that the reputation of the senate was at stake based on allegations levelled against Saraki and Melaye

However, the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges recommended Ndume’s suspension for failing to authenticate the allegations before calling for the probe of his colleagues.

The committee also cleared both Saraki and Melaye of any wrong doing.

But, Melaye while featuring on Channels Television programme, Politics Today, said the decision to suspend Ndume was that of the Senate and not his and Saraki.

According to Melaye, “Senator Ndume is an experienced legislator, having been in the house of representatives for two terms, and this being his second term in the senate.

“I didn’t prophecy that he would be suspended, or did Bukola Saraki, who was wrongly accused. We are not the ones who make up the senate. Ndume should understand the workings of the national assembly. The senate is made up of 109 members.

“So, the decision to suspend Ndume was not that of Saraki or myself, but the decision of the Nigerian senate after investigation by the relevant committees… We have a very responsible senate president, a very compassionate Nigerian who does not believe in witch-hunting.

“Already, there is a lot of pressure, and people are appealing to the person of Bukola Saraki, and I can say on good authority that if Saraki had presided over Ndume’s case, he may not have been suspended because the senate president is a compassionate character. So, if Ndume shows remorse, apologise to the senate, the Bukola Saraki that I know will persuade members to either reduce his punishment or forgive him.”

He also disagreed with those who said Ndume was not given fair hearing.

“The senate has the capacity to suspend any erring senator, but what we are saying here is very clear, due process was followed.

“Ali Ndume was given fair hearing. He appeared before the committee, he defended himself before the committee gave that recommendation, which was ratified by the entire senate”, he said.

PDP accuses Fayose

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