- Safiu Kehinde
Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has expressed his displeasure over the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) newly introduced four percent administration charge on Free in Board (FOB) value on imported goods.
The ex-lawmaker faulted the development which he claimed is unacceptable in a country with poverty index and with many businesses shutting down.
Saraki, in a post on his X handle on Sunday, warned that importers will inevitably pass the costs on to consumers, which will further strain the budgets of millions of struggling households.
He condemned the new charge which is not only restricted to luxury goods but to all imported products, including raw materials.
Saraki charged the Federal Government to reconsider the policy and put it on immediate hold.
“With our annual imports estimated at N71 trillion, the new 4% customs administration charge on Free On Board (FOB) value will come to N2.84 trillion. Does this mean that the Customs Service requires an additional N2.84 trillion annually to do its job?
“Don’t forget they already have a budget and get an incentive percentage on total customs duties collected.
“Now, they want to spend more than $1.5 billion on running costs in a country with the poverty index we have and with many businesses closing down.
“Importers will inevitably pass these costs on to consumers, further straining the budgets of millions of struggling households.
“This new fee of 4% is not even restricted to luxury goods but across all imports, so even for industries that import their raw materials whose duties are only 5%, the customs agency will now charge importers an extra 80% of the duty amount as administrative fees!
“How can this make sense or support the government’s policy of promoting the ease of doing business?
“The government must urgently reconsider this policy and put it on hold immediately. Especially not now with what Nigerians are going through.” He wrote.