Plans are underway for the commencement of investigate hearing into the loss of over $30 billion revenue leakages arising from sources such as Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Autonomous Forex Market, Interbank, domiciliary and over the counter purchases for the importation of physical goods, payments of foreign service vendors, dividend repatriation, foreign loan and interest payments including foreign currency-denominated contracts payments by companies in engineering procurement, construction, installation, and maritime transportation.
Chairman of the Joint Committee on Finance and Banking & Currency, Hon. Abiodun Faleke who confirmed this during an exclusive chat with Tribune Online expressed the resolve of the Committee towards addressing various allegations raised in the motion.
The Ad-hoc Committee was mandated to investigate various originating documents maintained by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Deposit Money Banks, Forex Dealers, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Importers and other beneficiary companies.
According to the resolution passed by the House, the joint committee is to “identify perpetrators and the atrocities committed based on verifiable documents obtained from the valuable records and determine in a statutory and professional manner, the revenue amount involved in the malpractices by each organization based on revenue line item collectible by agencies of government for the purpose of timely recovery into government accounts.
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In addition, the joint committee is expected to “make a formal report of findings and provide necessary recommendation towards the correction and regularization of the problems aimed at putting a stop to the menace in the future and advice the House on the statutory provisions/amendments for penalties as provided in the applicable law for related offences as a deterrent to others.
In the same vein, Hon. Faleke, who doubles as Chairman, House Committee on Finance is expected to chair the Ad-hoc Committee that will investigate the ‘recent global crash in the price of crude oil on the Appropriation Act, 2020.’
As announced by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, other members of the Ad-hoc Committee are Hon. Musa Adar (Deputy Chairman); Hon. Mohammed Jega; Hon. Seidu Yusuf; Hon. Uchechukwu Obi and Hon. Nkole Uko.
Others are: Hon. Yusuf Ayo Tajudeen; Hon. Pondi Julius; Hon. Obanikoro Ibrahim; Hon. Ali Shettima; Hon. Jiba Micah and Hon, Yakubu Abubakar.
During the debate on the motion under ‘Urgent Public Importance’ sponsored by Hon. Faleke, the lawmakers expressed concern over the “unprecedented global crash in the price of crude oil as a result of outbreak of coronavirus (COVID 19) and its effects on the global economy.
“The House also notes that the global oil price has gone as low as $30 per barrel from over $50 per barrel.
“Nigeria as a mono-product economy is largely dependent on oil with the benchmark for the Appropriation Act, 2020 projected at $57 per barrel. The House is worried that the crash in the price of oil has a direct consequence on the Appropriation Act, 2020,” to the tune of N10.594 trillion.
and then