CORPORATE THEFT: CAC MANDATES NGOS AND CHURCHES TO PAY N5000 CONSENT FEE TO REGISTRAR GENERAL GARBA ABUBAKAR BEFORE PROCEEDING FOR BUSINESS REGISTRATION

Secret Reporters

There is a developing report of a likely underground and organized crime ongoing in the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) under the Leadership of the Commission’s Registrar General Alhaji Garba Abubakar, appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari on January 9, 2020, as the commission is allegedly using a new policy of Mandatory payment of “consent” to milk citizens dry.

Before the introduction of this new rule, the N5,000 payment for application of business name requiring “Consent” by prospective Business owners, was only required for names affiliated with Governance, Democracy, etc. but the rule is now extended to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) foundations, clubs, Schools, Churches and their likes.

This was seen in a CAC public notice which revealed that the new policy was put into effect from July 8, 2020, thereby denying all prospective business associates who refuse to comply, access to seek registration under PART C of the companies and Allied Matters Act 1990.

This development contravenes the Primary law governing Company and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) which regulates the eligibility, process for registration and rules of business operation in Nigeria.

More so, even as the commission has boasted of implementing innovative reforms to ease business registration, there are still complaints from Nigerians who feel extorted of their hard-earned money during this process or the gruesome process of dispatching of their CAC Certificate of Incorporation after successfully registering a company.

“CAC refused to confirm my payment on the platform, I made a call to the portal customer care, I was told to go to the CAC office at Yaba. On the second day I went to the said place with my international passport, two passports, receipt of REMITA for both reservations of name and registration thinking I will continue my registration from the office to my great surprise, I was told to go to the account section to confirm the receipt, after confirmation on CAC system, it was said that the receipt is valid but cannot be accepted because the receipt did not indicate my proposed company name’’, A source narrated.

It should be recalled that Abubakar joined the CAC as a principal Manager from which he preceded to the level of a Director in January 2016 and then rose to the position of Special Adviser to the former Registrar General in 2017 before his present appointment as the Registrar of the Commission after Azuka Azinge, the erstwhile registrar, was sacked for false declaration of assets.