As the controversy surrounding the 4% Free On Board, FOB levy recently introduced by the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS rages on, the immediate past Acting National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, ANLCA, Dr. Kayode Farinto has called on the federal government to abrogate the 1% Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme, CISS since allowing it to co-exist with the 4% FOB amounts to double taxation and would further impoverish Nigerians.
Farinto who made this call in a chat with journalists in Lagos on Thursday, also called in the federal government to remove the 15% surcharge on used vehicles and then allow a 90 days grace period to enable stakeholders readjust and get ready for the new levy before implementation.
Arguing that the 1% CISS was introduced after the era of pre-shipment inspection, as destination inspection levy, the former ANLCA National President opined that now that the government had succeeded in creating another levy for customs which he believed would also take care of Destination Inspection charges, the 1% CISS should be abrogated so that in 90 days time, government would be replacing it with the 4% FOB levy which in turn would ameliorate the sufferings of the masses.
Insisting that unless the federal government no longer want Nigerians to import used vehicles, Farinto who is also the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Wealthy Honey Investment Limited posited that the federal government had no need keeping that 15% NAC surcharge as the 4% FOB levy beckons.
He said, “So, if you are introducing the 4% FOB for customs, which I am not against, in view of the fact that it has been backed by law, all I am saying is that you should sensitize Nigerians, let us be prepared for it. So, government should wade in now before it becomes a story. Government should come in through the Federal Ministry of Finance, tell customs to suspend collection, sensitize Nigerians, in the next 90 days, it will be reintroduced; remove the CISS charge so as to ameliorate the suffering of the people.
“You can’t remove 4% FOB levy because it’s backed by law now. What we are saying is that you have to look at the people you are taxing because in line with this Nigerian Tax Bill, very soon, if it is passed into law, VAT will be increased to 10%. Are we not killing the industry? That is what the government proposed. It was 5% before Buhari’s administration. But Buhari’s administration increased it to 7.5%, even Bola Tinubu condemned it when it was increased to 7.5% and now, under Bola Tinubu, they are proposing 10% in this same industry, on one cargo.
“That’s why I said let us proffer solutions so that the government can look at it. We are not anti-government but we should feel the pulse of the citizens because our import volume is dropping on a daily basis in the last two years and the moment you introduce this one now, you will be encouraging people to go into smuggling.”
Photo: Dr. Kayode Farinto, immediate past Acting National President, ANLCA.
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