The federal government says it has temporarily suspended the implementation of annual dues imposed on public interest enterprises by the Financial Reporting Council for the next two months.
This came following widespread concerns from industry stakeholders.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole, disclosed the decision at a Ministerial Consultative Meeting on the Financial Reporting Council Annual Dues for Public Interest Enterprises on Wednesday in Abuja.
The meeting was called in response to numerous official letters the ministry received regarding the issue.
Daily Trust reports that industry stakeholders, especially the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria had cried out over the FRCN Act, which imposes cumulative annual charges on non-listed entities.
The Act imposes a 10 per cent penalty on unpaid dues for every month of default, accumulating until full payment.
The Director General of MAN, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, had in a strongly-worded statement protested and warned against what he called “astronomical” annual charges on private companies by the FRCN.
Consequently, at the meeting on Wednesday, Oduwole stated that the suspension follows a series of objections from the organised private sector, particularly the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association and Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, who raised concerns over the Financial Reporting Council (Amendment) Act 2023.
One of the key points of contention is a provision in the Act that imposes a 10 per cent penalty on unpaid dues for every month of default, which continues to accumulate until full payment is made.
Disclosing the federal government’s decision, Oduwole explained, “The government has decided to direct the Financial Reporting Council to pause in the implementation of the new annual dues. A suspension request by the organised private sector would be in contravention of legislation duly passed by the National Assembly. A pause is an administrative process simply to review, in line with what we discussed today,”
She said the timeline for the suspension would not exceed 60 days, adding that the government is committed to addressing the concerns raised by the private sector.
“We are a listening administration. The private sector has requested a range from three months to an indefinite suspension. We are not going to do that. So, at the most, 60 days is in my estimate.
“We are going to set up a technical working group comprising the FRC and the organised private sector who have formally written in, and this will be reviewed,” the minister added.
