Tinubu has good intentions for Nigerians on tax reforms – Parliamentarian Group

As the National Assembly considers the proposed Tax Reform Bills, the Parliamentary Monitoring Group (PMG) says that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu means well for all segments of the country with the initiative.

PMG, led by Dr. Adebayor Lion Ogorry, in a statement, called on both chambers of the National Assembly to give the Tax Reform Bills speedy passage, noting that it is in the best interest of the nation.

The PMG contended that President Tinubu is on the right track to reposition Nigeria among economically viable nations, adding that anyone who stands against the proposed legislation should be regarded as the greatest enemy of Nigeria.

PMG urged President Tinubu not to be distracted in his quest to liberate Nigerians from economic quagmire.

Blaming cabals allegedly benefiting from the age-long faulty tax system for selling the “anti-north dummy” to raise opposition against the Bills, they urged the lawmakers to place the interest of the nation above primordial sentiments.

“You see why some people who have been enjoying the rot going on in these agencies and their collaborators will do everything possible to ensure that status is maintained. But we at the Parliamentary Monitoring Group are currently studying the situation, and we shall not hesitate to come out and tell Nigerians the whole truth about the opposition to these Bills,” they noted.

“No single Nigerian is greater than all Nigerians. Economic hardship is like rain; when it happens, it doesn’t exclude the roof of your neighbours.”

Recall that President Tinubu recently proposed four Bills seeking to reform the taxation system and tax administration in Nigeria.

The Bills – the Nigeria Tax Bill, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill – are currently before the National Assembly as executive Bills.

They stem from the recommendations of the Taiwo Oyedele-led Presidential Committee on Tax and Fiscal Policy Reform, inaugurated in August 2023 by Tinubu.

The Tajudeen Abbas-led House subsequently organised an interactive hearing involving stakeholders on tax matters on Monday.

The objectives of the four Bills can be summarised as effectively coordinating federal, state, and local tax authorities, thereby eliminating the overlapping responsibilities, confusion, and inefficiency that have plagued tax administration in Nigeria for years.

However, hardly had the Bills been presented that they started receiving opposition, with some stakeholders tagging them as anti-north.

The National Executive Council, made up of the 36 state governors and presided over by Vice President Kashim Shettima, at its meeting on Thursday, advised President Tinubu to withdraw the Bills.