‘Contractors Milking Federal Govt Through New Expatriate Quota Policy’

Stakeholders in the expatriate quota allocation system have alleged that the federal government is losing revenue running into billions of naira to contractors executing the new expatriate quota policy.

The policy, which was described as fraudulent, was introduced by the administration of immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari.

According to them, the sharp practices associated with the system has led to loss of investors’ confidence in the ease of doing business in Nigeria.

In a petition they wrote to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the stakeholders called for a thorough investigation of the management of expatriate quota policy to fish out those involved in the alleged scam.

The petitioners, under the aegis of Concerned Stakeholders of Expatriate Quota Sector, were represented by their national coordinator, Mr. Ene Utobong, national secretary, Shegun Adewale, and national publicity secretary, Ismaila Badejo.

In the petition the trio signed, they told President Tinubu that the expatriate quota allocation, which was hitherto handled by the officials of the Ministry of Interior, was contracted to private agents who share revenue with the federal government on 60/40 basis in favour of the contractors.

The petition was copied the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and the Department of State Services (DSS),

According to the petition which was cited by LEADERSHIP, the contractors are cronies of top officials of the ministry who collect charges on behalf of the government and take the lion share, then remit peanuts to the government.

It also alleged that big companies that have been applying and obtaining the expatriate allocation are being sidelined while new and barely known companies are getting allocation with ease.

The petition also pointed out that “it is dangerous” to expose classified data and information of multinational com companies and the contractors

Expatriate quota is a policy that allows the Nigerian government to grant permits tthrough any security screening to establish their professional expertise?

“How can we allow obscure and unqualified agents to have access to classified documents about our multinational corporations that have been contributing immensely to our economic growth and development?

“The entire current process has the capacity to undermine Nigeria’s national security through sabotage. The Nigerian government is losing so much revenue to fraudulent and corrupt ministry officials and their accomplices, the contractors.

“Exposing Nigeria’s economic intelligence and security to questionable elements without technical and professional backgrounds to access classified data and pass the same to enemies of Nigeria,” he said.