The House of Representatives Joint Committee on Finance, Customs and Public Petitions, has summoned the Attorney-General of the Federation, Comptroller-General of Customs and Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning to appear before it on November 6, 2019, over alleged concession scam.
Others summoned by the committee include the Managing Director/CEO of HUAWEI Technical Services Provider, Managing Director/CEO Bergmans Security Consultant and Supplies Ltd, Bionica Technologies (West Africa) Limited, and Managing Director/CEO of African Finance Corporation.
The joint committee issued the summons yesterday, James Faleke, Yuguda Hassan Kila and Jerry Alagbaoso, chairmen of House Committees on Finance, Customs and Public Petitions respectively.
It also warned all the parties to suspend the proposed concession arrangement for the Customs modernization project.
The modernisation project was conceptualised to make Customs’ operations electronic and more efficient in line with global standards.
Those summoned, according to the panel, are to explain their roles in the alleged concession scam.
The inquiry that kicks off next Wednesday came on the heels of an adopted motion on the floor of the House on October 10, 2019.
The motion sought suspension of proposed concession arrangement for the Customs modernization project to ascertain the propriety of the deal and verify allegations that it might be a scam, meant to defraud the country.
The House said it was conducting the investigation, in line with section 88(1) (a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution of the country.
The section empowers the National Assembly as a quasi-judicial body, to conduct investigations and even issue punitive recommendations.
Meanwhile, the Senate has summoned former governor of Ekiti State and Minister of Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, to appear before it over alleged N15 billion allocated to a private company in the budget.
Also summoned to appear before the committee, led by Senator Rose Oko, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Cross River North, is the acting Managing Director of Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, NEPZA, Terhembe Nongo.
With the summon, the Senate is asking NEPZA to give full details of the money allocated to the company in 2017 when it was not in existence.
It would be recalled that the 8th Senate had directed the acting Managing Director of Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, Terhemba Nongo, to return N14.3billion to the national treasury.
According to the 8th Senate, the money was diverted from the 2017 budget of NEPZA.
Speaking yesterday in Abuja while presenting the report of her committee to the Committee on Appropriations, Senator Oko said during the budget defence of the Ministry, she queried the Minister and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry on the purpose of the N15 billion in the budget which they were unable to defend .
According to her, when the minister came for budget defence, the Permanent Secretary told the Senate then that they didn’t know anything about the issue, as it was between Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, NEPZA, and the company.
Senator Oko explained that the committee had asked for the shareholding structure from the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, adding that the documents provided did not reveal the identity of the shareholders.
Oko told the Senate Committee on Appropriations that the committee had asked NEPZA to give full details of what happened.
She noted that their response was that the money was allocated to the company in 2017, adding that the money was released in 2017 to the company when it was not yet registered by the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC.
Oko said: “The company was registered in 2018; meanwhile, the money was already allocated in 2017 which is domiciled in CBN. More so, N15 billion was released two days ago to the same company.”
In his remarks, Senator Barau Jubrin, Chairman, Committee on Appropriations, said the committee directed the NEPZA MD, Minister and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry to appear on Monday to correct the anomaly.
He said: “We will fix a date for you to come with the Minister and the permanent secretary alongside the MD of Nigeria Export Processing Zones Authority, NEPZA, on Monday by 11am to correct this anomaly.”
