Senate Probe  ₦34tn Import Duty Waivers, Warns Defaulting Agencies of Sanctions

….Committee threatens to report persistent offenders to Tinubu

By Haruna Salami

The Senate Committee on Finance on Monday commenced an investigation into the Federal Government’s issuance of Import Duty Exemption Certificates (IDEC) worth about ₦34 trillion between March1, 2020 and 2025, as part of efforts to curb revenue leakages and scrutinise the remittance practices of federal revenue-generating agencies.

The committee also cautioned Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that failed to honour invitations to its ongoing investigative hearing on the remittance of internally generated revenue and operating surplus into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) from 2023 to 2025.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Sani Musa, warned that agencies that continued to ignore Senate invitations would face legislative and administrative sanctions and could ultimately be reported to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Appearing before the committee, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, defended the Federal Government’s import duty exemption policy, maintaining that the waivers were introduced to achieve broader economic, security and social objectives rather than merely forgoing revenue.

Adeniyi disclosed that Import Duty Exemption Certificates issued in 2025 were valued at approximately ₦34 trillion, a figure that immediately attracted lawmakers’ attention over its implications for government revenue.

According to him, about 60 per cent of the total value was tied to duty-free importation of military equipment needed to address Nigeria’s security challenges.

He explained that the remaining exemptions covered approved imports of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles, electric and hybrid vehicles, medical equipment, pharmaceutical products, industrial machinery, manufacturing inputs and food items brought in under government intervention programmes to stabilise prices.

The Customs boss stressed that fiscal incentives should not be judged solely by the amount of revenue generated.
“Fiscal policy is not only about collecting revenue. Government also uses tax incentives and duty exemptions to stimulate investment, improve healthcare, support manufacturing, strengthen national security and reduce the cost of living,” he told the committee.

He, however, recommended closer monitoring of beneficiaries to ensure that the objectives for which the waivers were granted were achieved.

According to him, government should periodically assess whether beneficiaries had reduced prices, expanded production, created employment and improved access to healthcare.

The committee also reviewed the revenue performance of the Nigeria Customs Service over the past four years.

Adeniyi said the Service generated ₦3.2 trillion in 2023 against a target of ₦3.67 trillion, representing a shortfall of about eight per cent.

He said revenue collection improved significantly in 2024, with Customs generating ₦6.1 trillion against a target of ₦5.079 trillion, exceeding the target by more than 20 per cent.

For 2025, he disclosed that the Service realised ₦7.2 trillion, surpassing its ₦6.584 trillion target, while revenue collected between January and June this year stood at about ₦4.5 trillion out of the annual target of ₦11 trillion.

The Comptroller-General attributed fluctuations in revenue to disruptions in global trade arising from the Russia-Ukraine war and the crisis in the Middle East.

Despite those challenges, he expressed optimism that cargo traffic was recovering, noting that import volumes recorded in July had shown encouraging improvement.
Lawmakers also examined the Federal Government’s policy of reducing import duties on vehicles.

Former Edo State Governor and Senator Adams Oshiomhole questioned the policy, arguing that lower tariffs on imported vehicles, especially fairly used ones, could weaken Nigeria’s local automobile assembly industry.

While acknowledging that Customs only implements government policies, Oshiomhole maintained that authorities must strike a balance between making vehicles affordable and protecting local manufacturers.
Responding, Adeniyi reiterated that Customs had no role in formulating fiscal policy.

“We implement government policy. Naturally, lower import duties affect Customs revenue, but the policy was introduced to make vehicles more affordable for Nigerians facing severe economic hardship,” he said.

On the National Single Window project, Adeniyi informed the committee that implementation had progressed to the second phase, with the digital systems of relevant government agencies already integrated into a common platform.

He said extensive consultations had been held with importers, exporters, shipping companies, airlines and terminal operators, adding that although some operational challenges had been experienced, they were expected during the early stages of implementing such a major digital initiative.

He expressed confidence that the project would ultimately reduce port delays, improve transparency and enhance Nigeria’s competitiveness in international trade.

Speaking on Customs modernisation, Adeniyi said the Service had introduced electronic payment systems, digital declarations, geospatial intelligence and advanced surveillance technology to improve revenue collection and curb smuggling.

He also disclosed that Nigeria’s exports had increased by about 70 per cent over the past three years following the establishment of a dedicated export command in 2023.

The Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) informed the committee that although Customs remits all collections directly into the Treasury Single Account (TSA), government-approved duty waivers on food imports had significantly reduced expected revenue.

The Commission also revealed that Customs had not submitted audited financial statements beyond 2019 and estimated its outstanding operating surplus liability at about ₦8.9 billion, pending reconciliation of updated audited accounts.

Following the presentation, Senator Musa directed the Comptroller-General to submit detailed revenue records and outstanding audited financial statements to the committee within one week.

The committee also postponed the appearance of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited after its Group Chief Executive Officer failed to attend the hearing.

A senior finance official represented the company and explained that the Chief Financial Officer was receiving medical treatment.

Several senators rejected the explanation, insisting that investigative hearings required the personal appearance of chief executives.

The committee subsequently rescheduled NNPC Limited’s appearance for next week and directed its Group Chief Executive Officer and key finance officials to appear in person to respond to questions on remittances to the Federation Account, compliance with Executive Orders, monthly revenue reconciliation and the financial implications of recent reforms.

At the conclusion of the hearing, Senator Musa expressed disappointment that several government agencies either requested postponements or failed to honour the committee’s invitation.

He warned that the Senate would not tolerate what he described as increasing disregard for its constitutional oversight responsibilities.

He said the National Assembly would invoke all powers available to compel compliance and, where necessary, recommend further action by the Executive.

The chairman listed the defaulting agencies as the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT), Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria, Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi, and the Veterinary Council of Nigeria (VCN).

Musa stressed that no public institution responsible for government revenue would be allowed to evade accountability, adding that the investigation was aimed at ensuring that all revenue due to the Federation was properly accounted for and that every agency complied with the Fiscal Responsibility Act and other applicable financial regulations.

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has over N13.9billion unremitted revenue against the agency from its operations covering 2023 to 2025.

The figure came to light on Monday during an interactive session between the Senate Committee on Finance and revenue-generating agencies.

Registrar-General of CAC, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, who appeared before the committee, confirmed the outstanding liability but assured the committee that the money was being paid gradually.

The outstanding liability was disclosed by the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) after the Chairman of the Senate Committee, Senator Sani Musa, asked the representative of the FRC to verify the remittances of CAC.

Although senators commended the CAC for its “impressive” revenue performance, they also queried the N13.9bn liability, which they considered to be on the high side.

Following the submission by Magaji that CAC was offsetting the liability gradually, Musa directed that CAC, the FRC and the committee should hold a meeting to reconcile the details in order to ascertain the exact outstanding balances.