Reps resume probe of alleged non-remittance of N10.6bn Customs duties by banks

The House of Representatives on Wednesday resumed the inquest into the alleged non-remittance of N10.6 billion Customs and Excise duties collected by five commercial banks in the country.

The investigative hearing was initiated by the House Committee on Customs.

At the hearing, the Chairman of the committee, Leke Abejide, said its team was determined to recover all unremitted funds and block all leakages before the end of this year.

He listed the affected banks as Guarantee Trust Bank (GTB), United Bank of Africa (UBA), Eco Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, and Providus Bank.

The chairman said the committee was working with the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on the recovery mission.

READ ALSO: CUSTOMS: Senate insists on probing N4trn revenue leakage

Abejide asked the banks to provide all necessary documents to the auditors for reconciliation and onward payment of the amount in question.

He said: “We have been on this assignment for about a year now. It was because of COVID-19 that we could not do much last year. But we are determined to finish it before the end of 2021.

“The assignment is so important because the major issue confronting Nigeria today is inadequate revenue and this is as a result of leakages everywhere.

“We are going to make sure that any money belonging to the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) that has not been given to them or that is being delayed or used for business is recovered. We are determined.

“We have not done much, we have only checked five banks and we have discovered N10.6 billion.”

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