House of Reps reject FG’s plan to purchase new scanners for Customs

By Tom Okpe

While 22 old scanners, purchased for $120m for the Customs Service wastes away, plans by the Federal Government to procure new ones has been rejected by the nation’s House of Representatives.

The House however, preferred the old scanners been repaired and put to use instead of spending another taxpayers’ money on acquiring new ones.

Members of the House Committee on Customs and Exercise made their feelings known at a public hearing on lack of transparency on the transfer of technical know-how from Cotecna Destination Inspection Limited, Societe Generale De Surveillance, to Nigeria Customs Service and Global Scan Systems.

Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, represented by Director, home finance of the Ministry of Finance, Stephen Okon had told the lawmakers that arrangement was being made by the government to procure three scanners for the Customs as a stop-gap measure.

He explained that lack of spare parts was responsible for the repairs of the 22 scanners bought for the Nigeria Customs Service in 2006, saying that unavailability of spare parts hindered repairs of the old ones, which caused  abandonment of the scanners.

Recall that 22 scanners were procured by the Federal Government at the cost of $120 million in 2006 and handed over to Cotecna Destination Inspection Limited, Societe Generale De Surveillance and Global Scan Systems on a build, operate and transfer basis with seven years contract but, handed over to the Nigeria Customs Service on December 1, 2013.

Okon said: “At the expiration of the contract in December 2012, it was extended for another period of six months which ended in June 2013.

Subsequently, the federal government entered into transition agreement commencing from 1st July to November 30, 2013.”

He disclosed that the then minister of finance constituted a transition implementation committee with the mandate to collaborate with the manufacturers to conduct an acceptance procedural test on the scanners to make them operational before handing them over to the Customs.

The Director said all faults detected were handed over to the service providers to rectify at the end of the day, lamenting that Global Scan systems failed to fulfill its obligation to fix the faults.

But in his response, representative of Smith Detection, manufacturer of the Scanners, Manoj Jagtiani said spare parts for the scanners were available and the majority of them are located in various parts of the country saying repairs can be effective and made functional.

Jagtiani said smith detection scanners underscored the quality and durability of the scanners, stressing that the scanners in the National Assembly and the Presidential villa were manufactured by the company and they have been maintaining them for over 20 years, adding that it would be out of place to say the scanners have no spare parts.

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He said his company held series of meetings with government officials and officials of the Nigeria Customs Service and submitted quotations for the repairs and rehabilitation of the existing scanners, stating that “13 of the existing scanners can still be repaired and upgraded for the use of the Nigeria Customs Service with spare parts, purchased from the manufacturers.”

Members of the committee, therefore, alleged sabotage, wondering why the government would think of buying new ones when the old ones could be repaired.

They also expressed surprise that Global Scan System Limited that failed to honor its commitment to the government when they were supposed to hand over the scanners to the government was again contracted to work with the Customs in management of the scanners only for the entire system to collapse one year after.

À member of the committee, Oluwatimehin Adelegbe in his contribution said; “I am forced to believe that there are some elements of sabotage somewhere because it does not make sense to abandon 22 scanners, making no effort to repair any of them and you are going to buy three or four. 

“Why can’t we explore the option of repair and modernising the existing ones,” he queried.

Representàtive of Comptroller-General of Customs, A. Saidu said the scanners were handed over to the Customs Service without the consumables.

Saidu stated that Global Scan System was responsible for the consumables but regretting that the company while operating the system failed to fulfill its own side of the bargain.

He disclosed that the company recently wrote the Service, demanding payment for services not rendered, threatening to drag them to court which Customs is still waiting for the summon.

Declaring the hearing open earlier, speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila regretted that the scanners were not functioning after spending $120 million.
Represented by Wale Raji chairman, House Committee on House Services, Gbajabiamila charged the committee to do a thorough job for the interest of the country.”