The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee has given some commercial banks a 4-day ultimatum to submit documents, and demanded that the CEOs’of GT, Zenith, Access and other commercial banks to appear before the committee in person
An ad-hoc committee of the House of Representatives probing deductions of taxes and sundry charges from the earnings of civil and public servants, as well as multiple bank charges on customers’ accounts, has issued a four-day ultimatum to commercial banks operating in Nigeria to submit all requested documents.
The House probe panel also insisted on the personal appearance of the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the affected banks at its investigative hearing, rejecting any form of representation unless backed by a properly signed authorisation letter addressed to the committee.
Chairman of the committee, Rep. Kelechi Nwogu, stated this on Tuesday at the commencement of the panel’s session in Abuja, stressing that the investigation was aimed at ensuring that all deductions made by banks on customers’ accounts were lawful, justified and appropriately utilised.
Nwogu noted that invitations had been extended to the Ministry of Finance, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and commercial banks operating in the country to appear before the panel.
Members of the committee alleged during the hearing that some commercial banks were engaging in illegal practices by deducting unexplained charges from the accounts of civil servants, public servants and other customers without proper remittance.
The committee consequently rejected the representation of the CEOs of GTBank, Zenith Bank, Access Bank and other commercial banks, insisting that the chief executives must appear personally before the panel.
“You cannot appear here without an identity. We are not here on our own; we are here on the mandate of the people who elected us into parliament,” Rep. Nwogu said.
He disclosed that the committee had resolved to reconvene on Wednesday next week, directing all banks to submit the requested documents on or before Monday.
“We will go through all the documents and we will put you on oath. It will not be well if we invite you again and you tell us the same story,” he warned.
The chairman added that any bank that failed to submit the required documents by the deadline would be sanctioned, stressing that the House would not leave any stone unturned in uncovering the reasons behind what he described as spurious deductions from customers’ accounts.
Other members of the panel, including Rep. Chidi Mark Obeta and Rep. Dominic Okafor, also lent their voices in support of the chairman, insisting that the bank CEOs must appear before the committee unfailingly.
