Reps Summon Nigerian Bank CEOs Over Alleged Illegal Deductions

The Chief Executive Officers of commercial banks in Nigeria have been directed to appear in person before an investigative panel of the House of Representatives regarding alleged illegal and unexplained deductions from customers’ bank accounts.

The summons was issued on Tuesday in Abuja by the House Ad-hoc Committee investigating deductions of taxes from the salaries of civil and public servants, as well as various bank charges.

Commercial banks routinely deduct fees such as SMS alerts, account maintenance charges, and transfer fees from customers’ accounts.

Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Kelechi Nwogu, accused the banks of making systematic and unlawful deductions, including charges that were neither transparent nor remitted to the appropriate authorities.

“Commercial banks are perpetrating illegality by deducting inexplicable charges from civil servants, public servants, and other customers’ accounts without remittances,” he said.

Nwogu stressed that the investigation aims to ensure that all deductions were properly authorised, accurately computed, and correctly utilised.

The committee has also invited the Ministry of Finance while also disclosing plans to work closely with the Office of the Accountant-General, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and commercial banks to guarantee a thorough probe.

The lawmakers instructed that the CEOs must physically appear before the committee, insisting that proxies were not allowed.

“You cannot appear here without an identity. We are here on the mandate of the people that elected us into parliament,” Nwogu warned.

The committee also gave banks a four-day ultimatum to submit all requested documents, stating that non-compliance will attract sanctions.

Nwogu affirmed the panel’s determination to uncover the reasons behind what he described as spurious and unjustified deductions from customers’ accounts.