The House of Representatives, on Tuesday, considered and adopted the report by its Committee on Customs and Excise on a bill to repeal the Customs and Excise Management Act 1958.
The legislation is titled, ‘Bill for an Act to Repeal the Customs and Excise Management Act, Cap.C45, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Enact the Nigeria Customs Service Bill.’
Part of the amendments to the CEMA is the restriction of controller-general appointment to the serving officers of the Nigeria Customs Service.
If the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), signs the reviewed CEMA into law, the current Controller-General of the NCS, Hammed Ali, a retired Colonel of the Nigerian Army he appointed to head the Service, will be the last non-Customs officer to occupy the office.
Abejide also noted that the review of the Act sought to reposition the NCS for improved efficiency and service delivery.The Chairman of the committee, Leke Abejide, in his presentation to the Committee of the Whole, noted that the old Act had “become obsolete in today’s competitive global world and also, in effective operations of the NCS.”
According to him, the full automation of the Customs with modern reality will facilitate trade, improve revenue generation and more importantly, expose illegal importation of arms and ammunition into the country.
