Benjamin Babine, Abuja
The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Pantami, has disclosed that he has written to President Muhammadu Buhari over the Stamp Duty dispute between the Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST), a subsidiary of his ministry, and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
He said he drew the attention of the President to a glaring act of injustice being perpetrated by the FIRS against NIPOST. Fielding reporters’ questions at a media briefing in Abuja, to mark his one year in office, the minister said the controversy was needlessly contrived to undermine the mandate of NIPOST.
“On the issue of Stamp Duty between NIPOST and FIRS, I have engaged the Minister of finance on that issue. I went to her office twice, and I have written a letter to that effect to the minister, I have written to my boss, Mr President around December and I sent another one around January or February.
“I think it is an official issue and I think it has to be treated as such, and so because of this, I do not want to open another chapter of controversy.
“The whole issue deteriorated when NIPOST sent their bill to the National Assembly, that bill was accepted. Only a day before the final approval, something happened with regards to Stamp Duty, but that bill is the bill of NIPOST. And this is the argument I have forwarded to Mr. President.
“And if someone went there and removed the name of one institution and placed another, the government has the power to challenge it. Because this bill has been deliberated for over a year, even a day before the final deliberation, it was carrying the name of NIPOST. It was only a day, the night before the final deliberation that certain things happened. And in the morning, the name of NIPOST disappeared and another name, which you may fill in the blank space, just appeared on it. I have attached all the evidences and forwarded it to Mr. President.”
Pantami went on to say that NIPOST was being victimised by more buoyant and illustrious sister institutions but vowed to continue to fight until the right thing is done.
“NIPOST is an institution that is not financially buoyant and unfortunately in many things of life, might is right, but we will continue to challenge any form of injustice or anything we feel is not right. I will not discuss the details, but I have forwarded the whole thing to Mr. President, another one to the Minister of Finance and the CBN Governor. I will continue to engage to ensure that the oppressed is rescued.”