Senate Clears Customs of N62.2bn Audit Infraction

The Senate Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, has cleared the Nigeria Customs Service of a N62.2 billion audit infraction highlighted in a 2019 audit report. The committee conducted an extensive investigation, during which Dr.

Bashir Adewal Adeniyi, the Comptroller General of Customs, responded to 77 audit queries raised against the service. The committee concluded that the funds in question were misclassified and not intended for remittance to the federal account.

The audit report indicated that the Customs collected N691.242 billion in 2017 and remitted N629.23 billion, leaving an apparent balance of N62.2 billion. Adeniyi explained that the discrepancies arose from misunderstandings regarding the nature of customs collections and misclassifications.

The committee agreed that revenue collected on behalf of third-party agencies should not be treated as federal account receipts. The decision to clear the Customs Service was supported by committee members, who acknowledged the need for further legislative action on the remaining 76 audit queries.