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Friday, December 7, 2012

Trade in fake C of O, Tax clearance thrives in Lagos

The Punch - Nigeria's Most Widely Read Newspaper
Breaking News, information and opinion in Nigeria
Trade in fake C of O, Tax clearance thrives in Lagos
Dec 7th 2012, 23:00

It is no longer strange to most residents of Lagos that a sworn affidavit is obtainable at a very short notice from touts who loiter around the Ikeja High Court and within a distance of a popular police station in the area.

What is news is that the 'services' of those who hang around the court premises also extend to the provision of sureties, certificates of occupancy, tax clearance certificates and all kinds of documents necessary for the fulfilment of  the conditions for bail.

An investigation by CRIME DIGEST shows that the peddlers of these items and their go-betweens hang out as far as the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, which is some few metres away from the Ikeja High Court, in search of potential clients.

Usually alert, these touts are shrewd enough to spot a possible 'customer' in a distance. Once they move closer to their target, they would ask, 'Sister, brother, do you want an affidavit?'

When approached by one of the touts, our correspondent told him that what she actually wanted was a sworn declaration of age. After negotiating a suitable price and writing the necessary details, she asked if she could get a surety with a certificate of occupancy.

She said that her friend's brother was arrested and arraigned for robbery recently and subsequently granted bail. The problem was how to fulfil the conditions.

"I believe it is possible, as long as the person involved did not commit murder. I will introduce you to someone who is knowledgeable about such things while you wait for your affidavit," the go-between said.

Another person, who obviously works as a security man at the High Court, took over from there. After listening to what our correspondent had explained to him, the guard said, "We need to know the name of the judge; that will determine whether we can help to fulfill the bail conditions or not. Some courts are more stringent than others. I will still have to take you to the people who will assist you. It is their job.

"You will discuss the price with them. I have no idea how much will be demanded from you, but I must let you know it is not an easy task because the C of O will be verified.  Then getting a level 12 civil servant is no small task. The addresses of the sureties will be verified by the court baliff before the bail will be granted."

 The security guard then enquired from another person within the court premises, obviously a member of the syndicate, about the costs of getting a C of O and other documents.

The man's contact replied, "The least amount would be N600,000. To produce a C of O for a landed property worth millions is not a child's play. So, it will cost you about N600, 000."

Obviously, the production of the C of O implied the collusion of officials of the Lagos State Ministry of Lands.

In company with the security guard, CRIME DIGEST then moved to the Ikeja Magistrate's Court where a group of elderly men sat under the shade of a tree, awaiting prospective clients. It was this group, which comprised about seven men, all in their middle ages, who sourced sureties for suspects and other persons arraigned in court.

Our correspondent was introduced to a well dressed elderly man as a friend of the security guard that was desperately in need of help.

"It will be best for us to wait for the particular court where the case was heard, to rise and then you come and call me. We need to go into the court. I still have some investigation to do. I want to know everything concerning the case because you might find out that the sureties also need to present tax clearance certificates. I don't know if your lawyer has got the order from the court yet. We can't fulfil the bail conditions in the absence of a lawyer. If the one you have now isn't cooperating, that is not a problem. We can always get another one.

"That is why I want to check the court files for the case. We need to know if the ruling has been obtained. If your lawyer didn't write an application for that, we would need to do that and get the order. It is from that order we would know what they need and what we don't need. That is how I would know the amount to charge for my services. I might give you an estimate now, only to get to the court and see that what you are telling me is quite different from what the court has ordered.

"I have not charged you yet. But you will need to have some money on you, just in case some things have not been done by your lawyer and we need to pay for them."

Clearly, the contact man for the job was no minion in the racket, as his contacts within the various courts allowed him easy access to peruse court files and other facilities necessary for his work.

Having given the men the assurance that she would show up on the following day with some cash, our correspondent went away, armed with a sworn affidavit provided by them.

The Chief Registrar of Ikeja High Court, Mr. Gafar Safari, however, said it was illegal for members of the public to employ the services of these touts for any legal document.

He said, "We have made all efforts to rid the court premises of these touts but the court is a public place and there is an extent to which we can go. We have called in the police several times as part of our efforts.

"It is now left to the members of the public not to patronise these touts. We have posted notices all over the court on this matter. People eventually learn the hard way when they are duped or the court refuses to confirm the documents because they are fake.

"We are also aware that some touts are presented as prospective sureties. It is the duty of the court to screen them and we do verify addresses and other documents presented in the bail conditions. The only area we can object is if the suerty is claiming an identity that doesnt belong to him. Other than that, it is not written on anybody's face that he is a tout."

As at press time, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ngozi Braide, was yet to react to the development.

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