Politics
Customs boss Ali meets Saraki, mulls legal action over uniform
President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki and the embattled Controller-General (CG) of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Col. Hameed Ali, have held a meeting to resolve grey areas over the latter’s refusal to execute a resolution reached by the Senate last week.
Ali has also written a second letter to the Senate, hinting that he would seek legal advice on the decision of the Upper Legislative Chamber to compel him to wear Customs uniform.
Dressed in long white shirt, with black shoes and a cap to match Ali, who arrived the Senate at exactly 5.30 pm was accompanied by the chairman of the Senate committee on Customs and Excise, Senator Hope Uzodinma.
He first went straight to the office of the Senate Leader, Ahmed Lawan. A few minutes later, Ali, entered the Senate President President’s office, along with Lawal and Uzodinma.
The meeting at the Saraki’s office ended at 6.38 P.M when the Senate President left. The subject matter of the closed door meeting was not made public, but it was learnt that the invitation by Senate to Ali to appear before it in uniform was the issue.
Ali later met briefly with a former governor of Kano State, Senator Kabiru Gaya.
At 6.49pm, Gaya and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang, later accompanied Ali out of the Senate building.
Ali came in a black Peugeot 508 saloon car with number HQ 89CS.
Read also: EFCC storms residence of ex-Custom boss, Dikko, holds family hostage
After the Senate rejected his request to shift the date for Ali’s appearance from today, the Customs DG wrote another letter in which he disclosed that he had already began to seek legal advice over the insistence of the Senate that he should wear Customs Uniform.
The Customs boss also asked the Senate to avail itself of the legal basis for its insistence that he wears uniform.
Ali explained the policy on payment of Customs duties by vehicle owners who do not have them as prescribed by law is already being reviewed.
The second letter which did not make any reference to the first one read on the floor of the Senate earlier yesterday reads: “May I respectfully refer to your letter dated 9 March, 2017 and inform Your Excellency that the decision on payment of customs duties by vehicle owners who do not have them as prescribed by law is currently being reviewed. The goal of the review is to take a broad additional input from the stakeholders and the public. I will welcome the opportunity to avail the Senate of our findings.
“Regarding to wearing of uniform, I wish to advise that the senate avails itself of the legal basis of its decision to compel me to wear uniform. I am similarly taking legal advice on this issue so that both the senate and I will operate within the proper legal frame work.”
The Senate had directed the Service from going ahead with the implementation of its proposed plan to collect duties on old and new vehicles in the country.
The resolution of the Senate, followed a point of order, raised by the Senate Deputy Leader, Senator Bala Na’Allah.
Adopting the motion, the Senate, said the status quo should be maintained until the Controller-General of NCS appears before the relevant committees of the Upper Legislative Chamber to explain the rationale behind the policy.
The Senate had directed him to appear at plenary on Wednesday in the Uniform of the service, but Ali had written the legislators to say he he was not employed to wear uniforms.
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