Shuns Invitation Seized N298m Car Allegedly Belong To Saraki

Senators have been insisting that the Comptroller-General should appear “in uniform” to explain the planned enforcement of duty collection on old vehicles.

The Newspaper headlines for Wednesday, March 22, have focused on Customs Chief Hameed Ali’s avowal that he will not appear before the Senate, the Senate decision to investigate the allegation that an armoured Range Rover car said to worth N298m and seized by the Nigeria Customs Service belongs to the President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki, amongst other top stories.

According to a report on The Nation, Customs Chief Hameed Ali will not appear before the Senate today, March 22.

But Col. Ali told reporters in Abuja yesterday, March 21, that he would stay away from the Senate in deference to a court order.

Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Abubakar Malami also wrote to the Senate, urging it to suspend its invitation to the Customs CG because of the court matter.

But the Senate insisted that no court could stop it from carrying out its constitutional duty. A source said the lawmakers might consider issuing a warrant for Col. Ali’s arrest.

Moving on, the Senate on Tuesday, March 21, decided to investigate the allegation that an armoured Range Rover car said to worth N298m and seized by the Nigeria Customs Service belongs to the President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki, The Punch reports.

The move was based on a point of order raised by former Majority Leader of the Senate, Ali Ndume, who also called on the upper chamber of the National Assembly to investigate the allegation that Senator Dino Melaye did not complete his first degree in Geography at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

Also, the ABU management said it would issue a statement on Melaye’s academic status on Wednesday (today).

An online news portal, SaharaReporters, which made the allegation in a report published on March 18, 2017, said the seizure of the Sports Utility Vehicle, allegedly belonging to Saraki, was the reason why the Senate was moving against the Comptroller General of the NCS, Col. Hammed Ali (retd.).

The medium reported that the car was intercepted and impounded on January 11, 2017, by the service for allegedly having fake documents.