Nigerian car owners have called on the Senate to intervene on a recent directive  of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to levy duty on old vehicles already in the country.

The vehicle owners, in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), yesterday, urged Senate to review the policy.

On Thursday, March 2, 2017, the NCS announced a one-month grace for all Nigerian vehicle owners who had yet to pay duty to do so or face outright seizure.

NCS Comptroller-General, Col. Hameed Ali (retd), gave a one month grace, from March 13 to April 12, 2017 for vehicle owners to pay  the appropriate duties on their vehicles.

Some vehicle owners said evasion of duty on vehicles was caused by corrupt Customs officials at the land borders.

A business woman, Mrs Victoria Onohwakpo, said the decision showed that the NCS is shifting its responsibility to Nigerians.

Onohwakpo said that it was the responsibility of Customs to ensure that duties were paid on all the vehicles that came through the land borders.

She said that since the Federal Government banned the importation of vehicles through the land borders, the new policy should start from 2017 and not on old cars…

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“ I bought my car five years ago and it is now the NCS is asking me to verify the authenticity of my Customs clearance and if I verify and it is fake; I will have to pay duty? How did vehicle importers succeed in bringing in these cars through the land borders, if not the fault of Customs? I think Senate should clearly review this policy and I do not see it working in Nigeria. I think the Senate should look into it because if they are trying to raise their revenue target, it should not be from retrospective duty payment,” Onohwakpo added.

A civil servant Ikenna Obelle, said the Customs duty should have been paid before allowing any vehicle into the country. “I think one month grace period given is too short. What they (Customs) should have done is to say ‘let us start afresh.’ So, what they (Customs) are doing is going to bring pains on Nigerians and car owners.

“It will destabilise the system and they are going to push a lot of people out of jobs, ‘’ Obelle said.

Thompson George, a businessman, advised Customs to look at other methods in trying to meet their 2017 revenue target. “How can Customs come up with this kind of policy in this time of recession when people are trying to survive?

“I think the Customs leadership is derailing. They lack ideas on revenue generation, so they want to transfer their deficiency to Nigerians.”

The new policy should take effect from the date of ban on importation through land borders.

“I think Senate should look into this,’’ George said.