Reps say fuel subsidy may hit N6trn

There are strong indications that the fuel subsidy deductions may hit N6 trillion at the end of the 2022 fiscal year.

The National Assembly in the amended 2022 Appropriations Act which was signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari had approved the sum of N4 trillion.

Meanwhile, the Ad-hoc Committee investigating the ‘actual daily consumption of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in Nigeria’, chaired by Hon Abdulkadir Abdullahi has unveiled plans to investigate the auctioned petroleum products by Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

While speaking, NCS Comptroller General, Hameed Ali, explained that Service obtains Court injunction before embarking on all the seized products except premium motor spirit which is inflammable.

The NCS helmsman who was represented by the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Enforcement, Investigation and Inspection, Mr Etim Edorhe, disclosed that total crude oil exported from Nigeria between January 2015 and June 2022 stands at 876,801,931.515 (1,296 vessels) while total PMS imported into the country stands at 2,380,814,974.418 Metric Tonnes / 3,703 vessels (2,380,814,974,418 litres) for the period under review.

While reacting to the issues bothering on the alleged smuggled imported petroleum products to other neighbouring countries, the NCS Comptroller-General said: “It is very easy for people to easily ascribe whatever comes in into the country as being taken out by way of smuggling, it may not be in what I have given to you but I just decided to take records of petroleum products that we seized, that were attempted to moved out in from January to December 2021 across the country.

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“Because I saw the direction this discussion is going, issue of smuggling or no smuggling, so Customs is not folding its hands, we are doing our work, the borders are there, we have the joint border patrol in place.

“Yes, we are daily intercepting these items as they attempt to move out. Some of them in tankers, some of them in drums, then in jerry cans and some of these smugglers have this ingenuity of having petroleum products in polymer bags that you would not know. But daily we seize them. We are always heard of whatever method they adopt. “I just told you, I took record of what happened in 2021 which I am going to give to you. In 2021, a total of 2,278,297 litres and with a duty paid value to N501,514,178,692.50.”

He however maintained that the seized petroleum products do not require court injunction before being auctioned. He said: “When you make arrest of inflammable products, you don’t keep them because of the possibility of fire around the premises. So, such items are auctioned and the money paid into the federation account.”

In his intervention, Hon Uzoma Nkem-Abonta said: “That is what I want to point out, Mr Chairman we also need the records of those auctions, the Auctioneers… so we can satisfy the public that these things were properly managed.

“I want you to rule on that, the product seized, he auctions, the payments and the auctioneers, and those who bought (the auctioned petroleum products) should be made them available to us. We don’t want to leave any stone unturned.

“So that we can look at these things critically and positively. He came with the list of the seized products but he didn’t give us orderly, so I ask that he gives it to us. So we can also cross-check. He may wish to tender that.”

While responding, the NCS helmsman who pledged to provide the details of all the seized petroleum products, said: “I am going to give you that, I will get back, the figure on 2015 to 2021. I will give it to you for 2021 you asked a question also about ascertaining the products.

He added that: “Before they are given out must be condemned by a court of competent jurisdiction. That is normally done.”

He, however, noted that there is an exemption in the case of flammable products, while every other item that is seized have to go to a court.

“No, no, no, they are inflammable, you cannot keep inflammable,” the NCS officer said.

While ruling, Hon Abdullahi who issued 7-day ultimatum directed the Clerk of the Ad-hoc Committee to write the NCS Comptroller-General to give us the full details of the products seized, auctioned, the auctioneers, the volume, the value ad any other related matter to this application.”

While speaking, Hon Abdullahi noted that by implication you are saying all the PMS seized needed no court backing for them to be auctioned.

In his remarks, Hon Abdullahi said: “As at February, the actual landing cost they are putting it around four hundred and something thereabout. The market in the international market affects the subsidy, the higher the crude oil in the international market the higher the subsidy but then, let’s have the volume and then if you even go further, if you want to impress us, you can even go further and give us the prevailing crude oil price.”

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