The introduction of import Duty Exemption Certificate (IDEC) by the Federal Government of Nigeria through the Ministry of Finance to boost the economy with the exemption of critical players from payment of import duties and other statutory Customs charges may have cost the country a whopping ₦16 trillion in fraudulent manipulation of the system.
This was even as local manufacturing companies and other institutions have been encouraged to advantage of the waiver incentives and exemptions on import policy.
The exemptions and waiver are actually granted for different strategic reasons, including strengthening primary industries that are just coming up to sustain themselves, create employment, and contribute to the economy.
Unfortunately, some businesses, people, and other organisations misused the system and underpaid the Federal Government by concealing under the waiver policy in order to avoid paying duty on imported items that are subject to duty.
A group called Association of Concerned Citizens of Nigeria on Revenue and Economy (ACCNRE) raised the alarm that Nigeria lost about ₦16 trillion to fraudulent practises under the policy on imports and related incentives, which are more of a scam than the intended economic benefits for the country. This is because of the massive corruption that is now tainting the policy.
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Philip Orji, the founder of the association and chief promoter of a bill seeking establishment of office of the National Inspector General for Tax Crimes Commission (NIGTCC), presently before the National Assembly, said while the waivers were not bad, lack of close monitoring has led to all manner of abuses, where supposed manufacturers offered waivers hide under its cover, by constructing fictitious factories and importing products over many years, thereby short-changing the country of revenue.
While appealing to the National Assembly to pass the bill, which has already scaled second reading in both chambers, appreciated spokesman of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, and Senate chief whip, Uzor Kalu who separately sponsored the proposed legislation in the two chambers.
He cited countries like the United Kingdom and the United States among others, where similar office exists alongside the internal revenue service agencies, for oversight purposes, said the NIGTCC would “protect the FIRS employee improprieties and external attempts to corrupt or threaten FIRS employees.
He said it was the duty of the legislators to fast-track the passage of the NIGTCC bill into law as the watchdog in the nation’s tax administration, to save the lives of the country’s unborn generations.
‘Tax is a complex subject to discuss; the poor don’t want to hear about tax neither do the rich have time to listen to issues that concern tax. No one loves to pay tax, neither does the government want to impose it on its citizens, but no nation can exist without tax.
‘In that respect, there’s a need for the government to take the responsibility of fashioning a fair, efficient and transparent taxation system that guarantees the security and the protection of the taxpayer’s right,’ he added.
Data from the nation’s Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP) 2023-2025 show that Nigerian government granted waivers, incentives, and exemptions worth N2.296 trillion in 2021 to different institutions through the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) while Customs total revenue collection in 2021 was only N1.34 trillion, according to the document. This implies that the total waivers granted by the Nigerian government surpassed its total revenue by 71.3 percent.
Africa Today News, New York reports that the beneficiaries in 2021 were the diplomatic community in Nigeria, the armed forces, airlines and some unique healthcare service providers.