FINANCE MINISTER TEARS NEW CEMA BILL INTO SHREDS . * Says Nigeria Customs Service cannot be autonomous.
Minister of Finance and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, yesterday in Abuja took a critical look at the proposed Customs and Excise Act ammendment bill and came up with a verdict that the bill if passed in its present form cannot pass an Integrity test in line with global best practices. Zainab who spoke at a Public hearing organized by the House of Representatives Committee on Customs and Excise listed six critical areas that makes the bill draconian . Represented by a Permanent Secretary, Mr Aliyu Ahmed, she admitted that eventhough a review of the 1958 Act was imperative, any new law which does take cognizance of the Service's primary responsibility would be dead on arrival. She listed areas where the Bill would not pass the minimum Integrity test to include plans to create an auton...