The immediate past executive chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Muhammad Nami, has defended his actions while in office, claiming that he briefed the acting executive chairman, Zacch Adedeji, of all the decisions he made as boss of the Service.
He said the acting executive chairman was “fully briefed on everything”.
Reacting to a report that he approved N11 billion ‘suspicious’ payments days after he left office, Nami in his rejoinder said all the decisions he took while he was the executive chairman of the FIRS followed due process.
He said: “I want to categorically state that every decision I made within the time of my stay in office was within the ambit of the law and within the lawful powers I exercised then as Executive Chairman”.
Nami added that “all decisions reached and extant liabilities/commitments of the Service during my stay in office are contained in the handover notes I made available to my successor, Mr. Zacch Adedeji.
The items listed in the report he declared “were part of the N16 billion outstanding commitments contained in our handover note.”
Nami further disclosed that “the N5 billion paid to the Joint Tax Board (JTB) was paid to fund the activities of the Presidential Committee on Tax and Fiscal Policy Reforms two months before I left office. It was paid after we received a letter to that effect from the office of Mr. President signed by Zacch Adedeji himself”.
He noted: “No payment was made by the Service after the announcement of my pre-retirement leave as claimed by this story. An approval for payment in the Service is one step of the journey to payment.
“It is the custom that when a new Executive Chairman resumes office, he would review, validate and make final authorization before any payments can be made.”
Nami reiterated the claim he made the day he handed over to Zacch Adedeji that he “inherited only N1.4 billion in the purse of the FIRS when I assumed office. I left N129 billion in the purse of the Service when I left”.
Nami handed over to Zacch Adedeji on the 18th of September 2023 in a brief but colourful ceremony in the “Chairman’s Conference Room” in Abuja.