On The Vaswani Brothers, The Nigerian Government Acted Irrational

If the daily show were to be in Nigeria, they wouldn’t need to do a rerun ever. There is an abundance of material that some ridiculously stupid action by government would be seen as benign. The latest of such actions was carried out last week by deporting three brothers doing business in Nigeria on allegations of criminal conspiracy, tax evasion, economic sabotage and money laundering.

It is a sad day in Nigeria when pro democracy activists like Femi Falana are spouting nonsense Nigerian government talking points. Besides the fact that Nigeria is a country with a large Diaspora presence, the deportation order was in bad taste. It is even troubling to notice that most Nigerian pundits are on vacation on this issue. The few that have commented so far seems to agree with the irrational action of the government. With the exception of Emmanuel Tiko Okoye writing in the daily independent of April 23, 2009, I am yet to come across any definitive response to this latest presidential blunder.

Now that the Vaswani brothers have been deported, has the Nigerian government recovered its back taxes? A sum in excess of 2.5 billion Naira. There is a revealing phenomenon in this saga; the Nigerian government it seems does not believe in its own laws and its judicial system. This is an indictment of the Nigerian judiciary and by no other personality than the Nigerian President himself. But beyond that, the question that needs to be asked is; are the Vaswani brothers guilty of the crimes they have been accused of? To my knowledge, they have not been found guilty by any court of law in Nigeria. So it is safe to say that their deportation is illegal and against the spirit of natural justice. The Vaswani brothers should through their counsel institute a legal action against the Nigerian government on the basis of racial discrimination.

Now instead of choosing the deportation route or closing their several businesses (thereby putting innocent Nigerians at risk of unemployment) a responsible government would ensure that those back taxes are paid, if any criminal action was involved they should have been prosecuted according to Nigerian laws and if jail time is necessary for the crimes that were committed the Nigerian government should have pursued the highest sentence to serve as a deterrent to others. It would not have mattered whether they were Africans, Europeans or in this case Asians, the law should have been allowed to run its course.

I am curious to find out from the Vaswani brothers if the opportunity presents itself as to whether there is something they know about the power players in Nigeria that makes those players uncomfortable and that goes beyond a case of owed back taxes. It is an agreed phenomenon globally that taxes can be scheduled installmentally and when faced with criminal conspiracy most civilize societies would rather prosecute and jail offenders rather than deport the said offender pronto. Deportation would not be off the table if at the end of their jail time, their residential status has expired then it would be more appropriate to deport the said individual. The recourse to deportation as a first measure is very troubling in my mind. And it brings me to my earlier concern about the possibility of secret illegal transactions between the power elites in Nigeria and the Vaswani brothers.

And what about their native collaborators? Are they going to be prosecuted or is it going to be business as usual now that the brothers are gone. That Nigerians are disappointed in the Yar’Adua government is an understatement, the scary thing is that this government like the one before it does not believe in Nigerian law and in its institutions.

abdulajia@yahoo.com

www.abdulajia.blogspot.com

Robot  # 1 | 27.04.2009 00:35

If the daily show were to be in Nigeria, they wouldn’t need to do a rerun ever. There is an abundance of material that some ridiculously stupid action by government would be seen as benign. The latest of such actions was carried out last week by deporting three brothers doing business in Nigeria on allegations of criminal conspiracy, tax evasion, economic sabotage and money laundering. If the daily show were to be in Nigeria, they wouldn’t need to do a rerun ever. There is an abundance of material that some ridiculously stupid action by government would be seen as benign. The latest of such actions was carried out last week by deporting three brothers doing business in Nigeria on allegations of criminal conspiracy, tax evasion, economic sabotage and money laundering. ...Read the full article.

AISAGBON OMOGIADE  # 2 | 27.04.2009 07:43

Did you ask why they were also deported during OBJ's tenure as President?I know some countries in southern europe that deport immigrants who commit financial crimes. The Vaswani brothers are not the only foreign investors in Nigeria.Some Indians and Lebanese are known to have taken advantagre of the very corrupt nature of some public officials in many African countries to smuggle out mineral resources and evade taxes. I dont see anything wrong with the federal government's decision,if it is in accordance with our laws.

ahbego  # 3 | 27.04.2009 08:32

=AISAGBON OMOGIADE;350473>Did you ask why they were also deported during OBJ's tenure as President? ... ... ... I dont see anything wrong with the federal government's decision,if it is in accordance with our laws. Hear hear!!

AISAGBON OMOGIADE  # 4 | 27.04.2009 08:46

=ahbego;350483>Hear hear!! Hear what na?You are free to educate me. I am all ears!!

Johntina  # 5 | 27.04.2009 09:17

What does the daily show mean? How important/global is such a show that you believe that everyone ought to know it? Under what law do you advise your Vaswani people to sue the Federal government?

iamgod  # 6 | 27.04.2009 10:29

=AISAGBON OMOGIADE;350487>Hear what na?You are free to educate me. I am all ears!! Point is, Fed Govt seems to be doing a yo-yo on the Vaswani's. First they were deported, then allowed to return by Yaradua's Govt, then deported again by the same Govt. Does give the impression there is more to this story than just a simple criminal act. Also, what has happened to their local collaborators?

Ajia  # 7 | 27.04.2009 11:15

Johntina, The daily show is a satirical comedy show that runs mon-fri on the Comedy Central Network here in North America. It parodies real world situations but in a more nuanced kind of way. Some have argued that the daily show sometimes makes more sense than the traditional media. As for the legal recourse avaiable to the Vaswanis, I know you have heard of racial profiling and discrimination. A.Y.Ajia “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever does” - Margaret Mead

liloldlady  # 8 | 27.04.2009 11:22

=Ajia;350545>Johntina, The daily show is a satirical comedy show that runs mon-fri on the Comedy Central Network here in North America. It parodies real world situations but in a more nuanced kind of way. Some have argued that the daily show sometimes makes more sense than the traditional media. As for the legal recourse avaiable to the Vaswanis, I know you have heard of racial profiling and discrimination.A.Y.Ajia “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever does” - Margaret Mead To that, our counter claim will be, to search for something in our Criminal/penal codes, dealing with fraudulently conducting business, and pillaging another's economy whilst Indian. Racial profiling is based on facts...as unsavoury as the practice is.

Eja  # 9 | 27.04.2009 12:00

Lawyer Ajia says putting out those parasites from India called Vaswani is "racist". I hope you will now take up the cases of some from the thousands of Nigerians currently waiting deportation from foreign lands for irregularities. I also hope that you will advocate on behalf of the others who are awaiting trial for breaking the laws in foreign countries. There are some in India from what I was told and, going by the criteria you are applying here, the prosecution of Nigerian law-breakers by Indians, Europeans, Arabs and other Asiatics is "racist"... He also bemoans "the thousands who will lose their job.." How about the thousands..no..tens of thousands of Nigerians who benefit directly and indirectly from 419, drug-dealing, international whoring, toxic waste dumping, and, of course, the millions who are benefiting from the money that is flowing from the despoiled Niger Delta? When are you going to write a piece about letting their bread-winners carry on doing what they are doing? Lawyer Ajia, I hope the Vaswani parasites (or their Nigerian collaborators) see the good job you are doing here...you most definitely deserve to be rewarded. In your next piece, perhaps you would like to tell us about all the wonderful things these parasites have done for us. Teach us so that we will know not to disturb their type in future. Thanking you in advance.

KennyJop  # 10 | 27.04.2009 13:11

We Did Not Defraud FG -Vaswanis By by Muhammad K. Muhammad The Vaswani brothers have denied charges made by the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that they cheated the federal government to the tune of N3 billion. In a statement yesterday, the Vaswanis denied any underhand dealing against the government and accused the EFCC of flouting the government's due process mantra in order to "send us out of business to satisfy the wish of our competitors". "This government says it is a due process government and we believe them. Why is the EFCC not toeing the official line of due process?" Sunil Vaswani, Chairman of the Stallion Group, asked. The EFCC Chairman, Mrs Farida Waziri, had on Friday declared the Vaswani brothers wanted for allegedly cheating the federal government through underpayment of customs duties on rice importation. "Recently, they defrauded the federal government of Nigeria of the sum of N3 billion through one of their business outfits", the EFCC boss said. The Vaswanis, who own several manufacturing and trading concerns including the Stallion Group and The Honda Place, allegedly imported six cargo loads of rice and failed to pay the correct duties charged. "Recent investigations on the activities of the ", Mrs Waziri said, "show clearly that they have continuously and consistently perfected the art of underpayment of custom duties due to the federal government". The Vaswanis, however, maintained that the "sweeping and widespread" allegation of evasion of customs duties against them, a matter before the Minister of Finance, was a ploy to tarnish their good trading name. The Vaswanis, who were deported from the country in 2003 after a probe into their operations but allowed back in 2007, added that there was a hidden agenda in the EFCC declaration, saying that disputes between Customs and importers were common and they happened all the time. "In this instance, we even showed good faith by asking our bankers to issue guarantees, in the event the government adjudicates the matter not in our favour", the Vaswanis said. Explaining the current imbroglio, the Stallion Group chairman said the issue was about two shipments of rice that were imported after January 2009 with all necessary legal documents, adding that when the prices of rice skyrocketed worldwide in 2008, his company made supply arrangements of sufficient quantities between May and October, at a time government had issued a waiver of import duty. These shipments, he said, entered Nigerian waters before the stipulated duty free deadline of October 31, 2009, but the Nigeria Customs Service decided to claim duties against these last shipments in January. As payment of duties would undermine the very purpose of the government's move to stabilise local prices and ensure food security, the Vaswanis said, the group contested the decision officially with the Customs and had provided all requisite information since then. The Stallion Group chairman also said the advising on customs duties and charges were issued by COTECNA, an international pre-shipment inspection agency, and that this was confirmed by the Customs which issued the necessary assessment notices at the time. He maintained that duties were paid accordingly on a timely basis but, after the payment, the Customs Service suddenly almost doubled the price of the product and issued demand notices to the group to pay the difference. The Vaswani brothers, who described EFCC's action as "misguided and lacks any supportive evidence", demanded that rule of law be followed and that they should be allowed to carry on their businesses "without unwarranted disruption". The three brothers, Sunil, Haresh and Mahesh Vaswani, were reported to be on the run following attempts by the EFCC to arrest them. Copyright (C) 2009 All Africa Global Media. All rights reserved http://www.zibb.com/article/5103138/We+Did+Not+Defraud+FG+Vaswanis

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