By SaharaReporters, New York
Documents obtained by SaharaReporters from a source in the Nigeria
Customs Service show categorically that Nigeria has lost well over one
trillion Naira in revenue in the last three years alone, the direct
result of import concessions or waivers issued by the Ministry of
Finance.
Two weeks ago, the Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, was
asked by the House of Representatives Committee on Finance to present a
detailed account of just how much money has been lost because of import
duty waivers. The committee wanted to know who has benefitted, what was
imported, and most significantly: why these waivers were granted.
The query was one of 50 the committee gave to Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala
following her 2014 budget presentation to the National Assembly, which
she answered this week.
The committee said in a statement on Thursday it would conduct an
exhaustive review of her responses, and probably ask her for more
information. It will also call for memorandum on the state of the
economy and the 50 questions from professionals, academics, civil
society and all well-meaning Nigerians, to be be followed by a public
hearing, before it presents its report on the true state of the economy
to the Nigerian people.
The specific question asked of the Minister on waivers, Number 15 on
the list, was “how much exactly has been the amount of money lost in
government revenue as a result of import duty waivers in 2011, 2012 and
2013?”
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