President, Association of Motor Dealers of Nigeria (AMDON), Prince Ajibola Adedoyin, has described the e-valuation policy of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) as strangulatory and retrogressive to both the vehicle dealers and the Nigerian economy.
At a media briefing with journalists at the weekend, Adedoyin said the new e-valuation policy has jacked up the prices of vehicles by close to a 100 per cent arising from the hurtful duty computations embedded in the policy.
According to him, the e-valuation remains the classic example of government’s insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians as foreign used vehicles are now outside the reach of the majority of Nigerians who are already battling poverty, insecurity, inflation and other challenges.
Adedoyin explained that the policy simply means that the Customs duty of any imported vehicle, regardless of the year of manufacture, will be computed based on the template of a 10-year vehicle.
“For instance, if you import a 2007 Toyota Corolla, you’ll pay the duty equivalent to that of the 2012 model, which is 10 years old being the maximum age any imported should be, according to the new arrangement. Even individuals who managed to save up to buy personal vehicles that hitherto sold for N2 million or a little above that will now have to cough out about N4 million in an already distressed economy. So, what good purpose does that serve?” he queried.
Adedoyin further stated that the policy has taken a heavy toll on the association as over 350 vehicle importing and sales companies were on the verge of closing shops because they can no longer function under the asphyxiating circumstances occasioned by e-valuation.
“That figure is just for the companies themselves. Now, look at the bigger picture in terms of workers employed in these companies that would be thrown into the already saturated job market. We’re increasing unemployment in a country already battling insurgency and other deadly crimes that were caused by a large army of unemployed youths.
“So, to be frank, the e-valuation system is giving us a lot of issues.
If you remember when they first started, they were using brand new cars to do the ratings before we went on air and did a press conference and said no, we’re not accepting that before it was reviewed down. And then after the review, which we equally came to terms with, we have seen that the way they’re going about it is not what the association accepts, neither will it augur well for the economy of this nation, most especially the transportation sector, which is one of the economic pillars of the nation. How many transporters and Nigerians generally can afford 10-year old vehicles? Vehicles are necessities because they’re economic drivers and a means of livelihood for those in the transportation sector. Without an efficient transportation sector, the economy suffers and we are already seeing it. Let’s be honest here.
“So, in view of this, we call on the government to see what they can do in that regard because it is quite unfortunate that the larger proportion of vehicles used for our day to day life activities falls outside the 10 years maximum age that was set by the Nigeria Customs Service and this has caused lots of issues”, the AMDON President explained.
Adedoyin also picked holes in the revenue generation philosophy behind the introduction of the e-valuation policy, saying it was a poorly-conceived programme that would ultimately rob the Federal Government of huge funds because the initiative naturally encourages massive smuggling of vehicles with its concomitant security implications.
“They’re just creating businesses for neighbouring countries because the vehicles meant for the Nigerian market would be shipped there and then smuggled into Nigeria by road without paying Customs duties, taxes and other charges.
“There is a newspaper report credited to the Chief of Defence Staff which disclosed that there are 137 unguarded land borders in the north alone. We have other porous borders in other papers of the country because Customs personnel are not everywhere.
“So, these are routes where vehicles could be smuggled through and the so-called revenue the government is seeking to boost would crash instead. That is penny wise, pound foolish”, he added.
The AMDON President also said the policy has safety implications because more accidents may be witnessed in the country because many transporters do not have money to replenish their fleet with fresh stock of foreign used vehicles.
“So, they’ll keep recycling the old rickety ones that are already tired. No money to get new ones and no loans for them.
And this argument about not wanting Nigeria to become a dumpster for used vehicles does not add up because there are many healthy vehicles older than 10 years that can be imported. It’s just for the officials at the seaport to ensure good ones come in since the ones assembled in Nigeria and those in the 10-year bracket are not affordable and accessible”, he said.
Adedoyin also spoke on the forthcoming 2023 general elections, saying that his association with 3.6 million registered members in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), would only support very credible candidates, especially for the Presidency.
“I think this time around as a body, we have decided to truly come together and see that it is those that have the interest of our nation at heart that we will vote for. Economic challenges are major causes of insecurity and we need leaders with the ability to turn things around.
“Because I can tell you, we have at least 3.6 million registered members in the 36 states and the FCT. We’re going to use that as a tool come 2023 to know which way we are going to go. So, we can look for a credible person, the one that will be very passionate about the people and their policies; the ones that will hear your cries and reason with it. Those are the kind of people that we are going to work for as an association to make sure that our country comes back on track”, he noted.
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