The Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal yesterday reserved judgement in the appeal filed by 22 commercial banks challenging a judgement of a Federal High Court which ordered them to remit the sum of N50 as stamp duty on every transaction from N1, 000 and above to Nigerian Postal Services through KASMAL International Services limited.

The special panel constituted by the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, reserved judgment after hearing arguments from the banks and KASMAL International Services limited, owned by a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Senator Buruji Kashamu.

The banks are contesting the legality of the politician’s company to collect stamp duty on behalf of the government.

The banks are, Access Bank Plc, Citibank Nigeria Limited, Diamond Bank Plc, ECObank Plc, Enterprise Bank Plc, Fidelity, First Bank Nigeria Plc, First Monument bank Plc, First Inland Bank Plc, and Heritage Banking Company Limited.

Others are Mainstreet Banking Limited, Skye Bank Plc, Stanbic IBTC Bank Limited, Standard Chartered Bank Plc, Sterling Bank Plc, Union bank Plc, United Bank of Nigeria Plc, Unity bank Plc, WEMA bank Plc, Unity bank Plc and Zenith bank Plc.

At the lower court, KASMAL International Services had, urged the court to order the banks to give effect to the Agency Agreement between it and the Nigerian Postal Services as well as the Corporate Agreement between it and the School of Banking Honours (the 23rd & 24th defendants) respectively.

The Federal High Court presided over by Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke had in his judgement declared that upon a community reading and the construction of the provisions of the Stamp Duties Act 2004, NIPOST Act 2004 and the Federal Government of Nigeria Financial Regulations 2009, the 22 banks are obliged to deduct and remit to NIPOST through the plaintiff a sum of N50 as stamp duty on all receipts by electronic transfer or teller deposit of monies from N1000 upward made into accounts operated in all their branches.

Dissatisfied, the bank in their separate notice of appeal urged the appellate court to allow the appeal and set aside the judgement of the lower court.

When the appeal came up for hearing yesterday, before the five-man panel presided over by Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, counsel to KASMAL, Ajibola Oluyede challenged the jurisdiction of the appellate court to hear the appeal.

In his preliminary objection dated March 4, 2016 Oluyede argued that the appeal had been overtaken by event and that the directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria to all the bank on stamp remittance has rendered the appeal academic.

The lawyer also submitted that irrespective of the decision of the court on the matter it will not change CBN’s directive.