Asset declaration: Customs officers may defy directive

Asset declaration: Customs officers may defy directive

By Our Reporter  on January 26, 2016   National
From Godwin Tsa, Abuja
Fresh indications emerged on Monday that officers and men of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) may defy the two weeks deadline by their Comptroller General, Col. Hameed Ali to declare their assets or risk sack.
The two-week deadline expires on Friday, January 29.
Daily Sun investigation at the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) showed that some officers were yet to either pick or submit their forms.
Ali had, on January 15, ordered personnel to declare their assets within two weeks when he observed that many officers had not complied with the provisions of the Act over the years, stating that the 14-day ultimatum for compliance will be strictly enforced.
The directive on assets declaration was contained in a circular, signed by the Comptroller General of Customs, Col. Ali and addressed to all deputy comptrollers general, zonal coordinators and Customs area controllers. All officers are to comply with the directive within 14 days.
However, investigations at the CCB asset declaration department  located at the highbrow Asokoro District of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, revealed that although some officers have obtained their assets declaration forms, most of them were yet to fill and return them for submission.
A source told Daily Sun that most of the officers who picked up their forms are “relying on a particular rule which allows them 30 days within which to fill and submit their assets declaration forms.”
The source, who declined to be named because he was not authorised to talk, referred Daily Sun to Rule 3 contained on the instruction page of the asset declaration form which specially allows every declarant 30 days within which to submit their forms.
The extant rule provides that, “every declarant is required by law to declare his/her assets/liability including that of his spouse(s), who is not a public officer and children under 18 years age, honestly, sincerely and submit same to the bureau within 30 days of the receipt of the forms.
Also, rule two of the instructions states that, “the responsibility to collect, fill and return the form rests solely with the declarant; therefore, submission of completed forms by the declarant through his/her respective head of department does not, in any way, exonerate declarant from responsibility or liability.