EFCC seals Nigeria office of Dubai’s property firm

FIRS shuts oil firms over tax, reopens another

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday sealed the Abuja office of Dubai’s leading developer of property, The First Group.

Although details were sketchy, sources said the firm may have been under the searchlight of the anti-graft agency as part of investigations into high profile cases of looted funds used to buy property abroad.

The company is reported to have allegedly assisted a Nigerian chief (names withheld) to purchase some controversial property in Dubair.

First Group is represented throughout the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe.

EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwajuren confirmed the development but declined details.

First Group has been recently linked with allegedly facilitating the purchase of houses for certain individuals under investigation.

Meanwhile, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), also yesterday, stepped up its tax enforcement efforts, sealing off two oil services companies in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

They are Cetco Oilfield Services Company and Aquashield Oil and Marine Services Limited which allegedly have tax liabilities of N9.7 million and N49million respectively.

At Cetco, the procurement manager, Edotimi Ebikefe, allegedly begged for more time to enable the company pays up, explaining that it has already commenced the payment of its tax debt.

Leader of the FIRS team, Umar Bukar Gana, said the enforcement drive was necessary because of the indifference of some of the companies to tax payment.

“I feel for the staff of those companies, but that does not mean we should not do what we need to do,” he stated.

Gana appealed to companies in the country to be responsible by paying their taxes, as this is an important way assisting the government to develop the country.

On Tuesday, an enforcement team of the FIRS, led by Anita Erinne, shut the office of AMG Petroleum Energy Limited in Abuja over an alleged tax debt of N27.3million.

However, FIRS has unsealed the corporate head office of HFP Engineering Nigeria Limited.

According to a statement by Head, Legal/Administration of the construction firm, Mr. Kingsely Omojola, the action was sequel to the resolution of the tax liability issues that led to the sealing of its office last week.