The Muhammadu Buhari government came under heavy criticism on Thursday, following a notice, enjoining Nigerians with bank accounts to do “self-certification”.
According to the notice, which came from Federal Inland Revenue Service ” all account holders in Financial Institutions (Banks, Insurance Companies, etc) are required to obtain, complete and submit Self – Certification Forms to their respective Financial Institutions.
“Persons holding accounts in different financial institutions is required to complete & submit the form to each one of the institutions. The forms are required by the relevant financial institutions to carry out due diligence procedures in line with the Income Tax Regulations 2019.
“The self-certification form is in 3 categories:
– Form for Entity
– For Controlling Person (Individuals having controlling interest in a legal person, trustee, etc)
– Form for individual
“Failure to comply with the requirement to administer or execute this form attracts sanctions which may include monetary penalty or inability to operate the account. For more enquiries visit
@firsNigeria website (http://firs.gov.ng) for more details.”
The notice triggered many angry reactions from Nigerians.
Many wondered why government, which already has their data in various forms, in BVN, National ID Card, Voters Card and Drivers Licence, wants to subject them to stress, by queueing for ‘self-certification at banks”.
