Muhammed Babandede,
comptroller-general of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), has disclosed how
a company contracted by the federal government sought to seize the country’s
assets through arbitration in the UK.
Babandede said the company tried
to seize the building of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
Continental Transfert Technique
Limited, a member of the Contec Global group, is a technical partner to
immigration on combined expatriate resident permit and alien card (CERPAC).
While appearing before the joint
senate committee on finance and national planning on Wednesday, Babandede said
all the revenue generated by his organisation goes to the treasury single
account (TSA) except that from the CERPAC, of which CONTEC takes a larger share
before the remainder is deposited into the coffers of the federal government.
The CG, who said “I don’t want to
talk much”, told the committee that the company is taking a huge chunk of the
revenue for “doing nothing”.
Babandede said NIS could do the
job CONTEC is contracted for at a cheaper rate and this would in turn provide
more revenue for the government.
“The agreement they signed
between the ministry of interior and the company, we are implementing…. The
agreement is that if someone, a non-Nigerian, buys a resident permit, the money
is shared between CONTEC, interior. Initially, it (combined expatriate resident
permit and alien card) was $1,000 and at that figure CONTEC collects 72
percent. Later, the ministry of interior changed the price to $2,000 and
adjusted the payment model — CONTEC, 55 percent; federal government, 33
percent; immigration, 7 percent and ministry of interior 5 percent. The
agreement was first signed in 2007 and it was reviewed last year (2019),” the
comptroller-general said.
“The truth of the matter is that
it was signed on our behalf and we have to implement it. This job (issuing
resident permit), we can do it. It is not rocket science. This has been on for
many years. This is a company that took Nigeria to court, to arbitration; it is
a huge issue. I don’t want to discuss more because the ministry of justice and
Mr President have taken it very seriously.
“If you see the amount the
company is taking, you will be worried. There were several investigations by
the senate, by the house; there are reports available if you want. I can get it
for you or you can get it in the national assembly.
“Nobody should defend CONTEC as a
company to do business in Nigeria. This is a company that took us to court;
this is a company that wanted to seize our property, including our mission and
NNPC building.
“Two thousand dollars for
resident permit? We can make that resident permit with $500; $1,500 can go to
the federal government. We throw away the company, and government will make
more money.”
The comptroller-general did not
reveal how the country has been able to manage the situation thus far and at
what time CONTEC approached the arbitration court.
Meanwhile, in 2007, according to
papers filed at the US court for the district of Columbia, “CONTEC and Nigeria
entered arbitration to resolve a contract dispute.”
“On August 14, 2008, the
arbitrators issued their decision, awarding Continental 29.6 billion Nigerian
naira. Nigeria was also ordered to pay Continental’s costs and 95% of the costs
of arbitration,” the document reads.
In December 2008, CONTEC also
sought for the arbitral award to be recognised in the UK and the “United
Kingdom’s High Court of Justice (“the English court”) issued an order
confirming the arbitral award as final and enforceable”.
In March 2020, following the
upward review of the permit from $1,000 to $2,000 in 2018, a federal high court
sitting in Lagos granted a stay of execution of its 2019 judgment which
nullified the hike of the CERPAC fees.
There are mounting concerns over
the agreements the country is entering into or has entered into.
Nigeria is currently struggling
to escape a $9 billion judgement debt awarded by the UK arbitration court over
a failed gas deal with Process and Industrial Development (P&ID).
The country is also faced with a
$1.2 billion liability if it decides to pull out of an agreement with Azura
Power.
Last month, the House of
Representatives raised the alarm over clauses conceding Nigeria’s sovereignty
to China in a loan agreement.
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