CONCERNS REGARDING THE BUHARI ADMINISTRATION'S APPROVAL OF A N142 BILLION E-CUSTOMS CONTRACT

The Federal Executive Council's recent approval of the N142.24 billion e-custom project has sparked allegations of egregious malfeasance.

This was revealed by Wole Badmus, the National Coordinator for the Forum of Non-Governmental Organizations in Nigeria, FONGON, during a press briefing on Thursday in Abuja.

Recall that despite controversy, FEC approved the N142.24 billion e-Customs modernisation project.

The project was awarded to Trade Modernization Project Ltd (TMPL).

But, Badmus claimed that the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN; and the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, Col Hameed Ali, are collaborating to deplete the Comprehensive Import Supervisor Scheme (CISS) and Nigeria Export Supervision Scheme accounts.

For the incoming administration, he claimed that the contract approval dispute is one of the obvious landmines.

Additionally, he said Ali was utilizing TMPL to steal the country's riches in conjunction with Hajia Zainab Jummai Ajijola, executive secretary of the Buhari Support Group.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who is scheduled to leave office in less than 26 days, must explain to Nigerians why he permitted Ali to divert the e-customs project in favor of TMPL, the speaker continued.

"The fraudulent intention of the CG Customs further manifests in the fact that investigations at CAC show that Trade Modernisation Project Limited and Buhari Support Organization, BSO, are Siamese twins. Hameed Ali is the Chairman, while Hajia Zainab Jummai Ajijola is the Executive Secretary of BSO.

"The foregoing has exposed the intention of Hameed Ali, with the support of the AGF and HMOF, to deplete the CISS/NESS accounts with funds running into hundreds of billions of naira.

"These are clear landmines being laid in place for the incoming administration. The desperation to access the CISS/NESS accounts before the departure of the current administration is quite suspicious."

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) Public Relations Officer, CSC Abdullahi Aliyu Maiwada, dismissed the report as false and without foundation in an interview.

He believed that once implemented, the e-custom project would. enhance the provision of services by Nigerian Customs.

The claim is false, according to Mr. Yunusa Abdullahi, Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning.