FIRS must sell stamps, collect stamp duties proceeds —Finance minister

The Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, has insisted that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), would be responsible for the provision of stamps to denote documents and collection of stamp duties proceeds on both physical and electronic business transactions across the federation.

The minister made the remarks in reaction to the assurance given by the Senate leadership to the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government Owned Companies (SSASCGOC) and the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) workers; that their grievance to retain NIPOST’s core mandate of selling the stamps and collection of the stamp duties proceeds have been addressed.

The Senate President, while addressing the protesting NIPOST workers, led by the SSASCGOC leadership at the National Assembly last week, promised that the demands in their letter to reverse the plan to transfer the core mandate of NIPOST to FIRS, had already been addressed.

SSASCGOC had written President Muhammadu Buhari, and the leadership of National Assembly on the scheme by the Finance minister to divert the core duty of stamp duty collections, both physical and electronics from NIPOST to FIRS; and asked for reversal of the plan, warning that 9,000 workers would lose their jobs if the NIPOST core mandate is diverted to other government agency.

In her reaction, the Finance Minister insisted that with the passage of Finance Bill, FIRS will be in charge of collection of the stamp duties.

She said: “By the passage of the Finance Bill it will be the Federal Inland Revenue Service that will be collecting the stamp duties. It is a revenue for government, it is a form of tax for every financial transaction that goes on. For example, you send a transfer, you see the bank charges you N50, FIRS is going to be the collection agency.”

However, the SSASCGOC General Secretary, Comrade Ayo Olorunfemi, and a former President, National Union of Postal and Telecommunications Employees (NUPTE) said the union and NIPOST workers would  resist the move my the Finance minister to divert the main responsibility of NIPOST to other agency.

Comrade Alhassan said: “on the issue of Stamp Duties Amendment Bill, that was sent to the National Assembly. This bill has been passed by both chambers of the National Assembly. The Issue came to the fore when some agencies raised objection to the bill, due to some clauses. That have even been clarified by the Organisations to the point that it shouldn’t be an issue as at now.

“But why we are here primarily is because of a policy that is being initiated from the Federal Ministry of finance to the effect that the stamp duties collection of the postage stamp, both adhesive and e-stamps, the proceed should be collected by FRIS.

“Their argument is premise on the fact that when it comes to duty, it is tax, and everything that is tax has to be done by the FRIS. But the position of NIPOST is that historically, since 1939, anything that has to do with stamp, with sales, with a fixing of stamp to legitimate agreements and transactions has to be done by the Nigeria Postal Service.

“So we sell the stamp, whether is electronic or the hard copy and everything that has to do with the proceeds or the collection of proceeds of stamps has to be the duty of NIPOST and that duty cannot be giving to another organization.”

He pointed out that NIPOST has a coverage nationwide, more than any other agencies, and the government has the responsibility that it (NIPOST) should be able to rake in a lot of resources to the federal coffer, adding that NIPOST has the capacity to do that.

He alleged that they want to smuggle in the policy through the Finance Bill, and called on the National Assembly to be conscious of the plan and not to yield to pressure from the minister and other agency to take over the mandate of NIPOST.