House threatens to issue arrest warrant against Customs boss

– House of Representatives has threatened to issue warrant of arrest on Customs boss, Ali

– The House is angry over the failure of Ali to appear before it to explain the lopsidedness of appointment of top officer

– A petition to the House raised the issue of the north being favoured in the appointment of high ranking Customs officers 

Barring a last minute change of plan, the House of Representatives might issue a warrant of arrest against the comptroller general of Nigeria Customs Service, Hameed Ali over his failure to appear before it.

The House on Wednesday, February 24, expressed its displeasure on the non-appearance of Ali to respond to issues bordering on the operations of the Customs.

File photo of Customs CG, Hameed Ali

Uzoma Nkem-Abonta, the chairman on House committee on public petitions, while deliberating on a case in which the Ohaneze youth Vanguard petitioned the House against the NCS, said that he hoped the CG is not trying to go head on with the legislature, Leadership reports.

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Nkem-Abonta said: “I hope the CG is not trying to go head on with the parliament, these are Nigerians who have complained. We have invited him severally and he keeps giving excuses. We may have to take a resolution as House not to give the Customs attention.

“This is not a military era. He has now been summoned to appear before the House on March 9, if he doesn’t show up a warrant will be issue. Then president of the Ohaneze Youth Vanguard, Igweka Okonkwo said they petitioned the House against the NCS due to promotion and posting that was carried out in 2015 that unfairly sidelined the South East.”

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He maintained that the South East in the cadre of senior officers had the lowest number adding that “it is a systematic way of cleansing an ethnic group.”
The committee chairman said that for example, the rank of deputy comptroller general, the northeast had 21, northcentral 15, southeast three, northwest 26, southsouth eight and southwest 10.

Meanwhile, the predecessor of Ali, is now in trouble waters as the federal government had ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest Abdullahi Inde Dikko.

The anti-graft agency had ordered its operatives to arrest the former Customs boss anywhere he was found.

Dikko presided over the Customs from 2009 to August 17, 2015, when he voluntarily resigned as the Comptroller-General of Customs.

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