Senator Isah Jibrin, representing Kogi East at the 10th senate has canvassed for internally generated revenue as panacea for Nigeria to wriggle out of debt trap.
The lawmaker, who bemoaned that Nigeria is saddled with a lot of debt obligations, identified Nigeria Customs as one of the major agency who could provide internally generated revenue for the country.
“As it is today, we expect Nigeria Customs Service to play one of the major roles in this drive to reduce our debt burden” he said.
Jibrin, who is the chairman, senate Committee on Customs, spoke on Monday at an interactive session with the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service NCS, Adewale Adeniyi and top management of the agency in Abuja.
Indeed, the committee expressed readiness to review the N5.079 trillion 2024 revenue target of the agency upwards from the second half of the year, in a bid to save the country from further borrowings.
According to the senator, “first of all, Nigeria is saddled with lot of debt obligations and we need to wriggle ourselves out of that trap and one of the ways to do that is internally generated revenue. Customs is one of the major providers of internally generated revenue and as it is today, we expect them to play one of the major roles in this drive to reduce our debt burden.
“We need to pay off what we are owing now and minimize additional loans we are going to take. Customs is in a very good position, if they are able to block all perceived leakages, they should be able to generate significant amount of income that will enable Nigeria get out of debt, at least partially.
Commenting on concessions given to some sectors of the economy for example, agriculture, the Kogi East senator said it is for those who are into agricultural services, those who are into solid minerals and those whose services have direct impact on the economy.
Specifically, he said “If somebody is bringing agricultural equipment into the economy and you try to take something out of that person in a way of import duty, that will discourage the person and that is what we are saying. It is not that any body took that money or custom compromised in the course of their services.
“Concessions were in the interest of Nigeria to encourage importers who are going into specific areas in the economy. There is a trade off here between importers and the country, particularly the things you think you are generating”.
Analysing the rate of unemployment in Nigeria, which he described as “very high”, Senator Jibrin said “Customs is not the only employer of Labour. They can only employ the number they believed, they can adequately take care of and we are putting them under pressure to exceed the 1,600 benchmark.
“We may not get beyond 2000, but for sure, we will get 1,600 and like we all know, there are so many unemployed Nigerians out there, I will always say, it is difficult for the Nigeria Customs Service to absorb all unemployed Nigerians, but they can only employ those they can” he said.
Also speaking, Adeniyi said that the service is seeking approval from government to allow them give waivers to owners of smuggled cars to allow them regularise their payment of Customs duties.
He said if the approval is given they could say that within a window, say within 3 months, if you are in possession of vehicles that were illegally imported into the country or that have not paid duties, you have the opportunity to go to Customs House for assessment and payment of duties.
But added will be done after adequate publicity, so that those who find themselves in such situation can get their vehicles regularise through payment of duties.
