• Senate leader faults graft allegation against NASS
• Reps defend Dogara, want EFCC to probe Jibrin

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo yesterday lamented the high cost of governance just as he challenged state governors to merge some Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as a way of cutting cost.

Meanwhile, Deputy Senate Leader, Bala Ibn Na’Allah, yesterday denied the allegation of corruption levelled against the National Assembly by Obasanjo.

Obasanjo who spoke in Abeokuta when the Chairman of the Joint Tax Board (JTB), Mr. Babatunde Fowler led chairmen of the 36 states’ boards of Internal Revenue on a courtesy call at his Hilltop residence wondered why, despite the economic crunch confronting the country, governors are still administering multiple MDAs, most of which are performing the same functions.

The tax chiefs are in Abeokuta for the 135th meeting of the JTB.

Obasanjo insisted that the time had come for state governors to show, in practical terms how they use their citizens’ taxes, saying that that is the only way the people would be willing to pay their taxes.

He said: “It is when times are hard that the government needs more Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and it is also the time that those from whom the government who would want to generate funds find it difficult to get money.”

To increase revenue, Obasanjo suggested that state governors “reduce waste, they must also reduce the number of MDAs. Government can do a lot by looking at their own establishments and where they have to bring together institutions that don’t need to continue to exist separately, they must merge them.

“They must also show that the money they generate and the tax that the people pay are well utilised. I think these are some of the things we have to do to get us out of the tight situation that we are all in and we pray that the tax will roll in sooner than later.”

Fowler, who agreed that tax payers will be willing to meet their tax obligations if they can see that taxes paid are being well utilized, told Obasanjo that their meeting in Abeokuta “is to appraise performance of the members, deliberate on tax issues of national importance to develop new strategies and also carry out its (board’s) functions, including advising all tiers of government on tax matters, so as to evolve an efficient tax administration system in the country.”

He lamented that 33 states in the federation still depend on federal allocation to fund their budget, saying the goal of the meeting was also to bring other states to a level where they would be able to generate at least 50 per cent of their budgets internally.

Regretting that only 10 per cent of taxable adults are currently paying, Fowler who revealed that the JTB is now targeting 10 million new taxpayers before the end 2016, explained why there is remarkable increase in tax payment.

“We have exchanged more information between the Federal Inland Revenue Services and all the state boards of internal revenue to make sure that everyone who is on the tax data base of a state is also on our tax data base.

“We have given them information of our tax payers so we have more people in the tax net and also started the enforcement process for companies and individuals who are not paying their taxes. We have taken action against them.”

In a statement he issued‎ at the Senate, Na’ Allah said: “My attention has been drawn to a purported statement attributed to former President Olusegun Obasanjo in which it was alleged that he made a sweeping statement to the effect that there are no men of integrity in the National Assembly. I am respectfully taking exception to the statement which I hope is not true.

“To start with, it is not in my character to join issues with elder statesmen who have had the privilege of superintending over the affairs of our great country Nigeria.”

Challenging the former president to name alleged corrupt persons in the National Assembly, Na’ Allah p‎romised to vacate his seat should Obasanjo mention his.

“This exception has become necessary in view of the enormity of the alleged statement to my person and integrity.

“If Obasanjo can come out with one proven record of corruption against me as a person I promise to vacate my seat as a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“For the record, I was the only member from Kebbi State who did not, at that time, collect the sum of N50 million as inducement to subvert the constitution and provide a constitutional framework for the third term ambition of then President Obasanjo. I find this statement, if it is true, to be reckless and terrifying.”

The senator continued: “The implication of the statement is to say that the entire over 170 million Nigerians have not elected a single person with integrity among the 469 members of the National Assembly. This does not conform to commonsense and reason.”

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives has defended the decision by the National Assembly to set aside N100 billion in the 2016 budget for zonal and constituency intervention projects.

Spokesman of the House, Abdulrazak Namdas who addressed reporters yesterday at the National Assembly complex, Abuja justified the decision by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara to sack the Chairman of the Appropriation Committee, Abdulmumini Jibrin, saying it was based on sundry acts of misconduct, incompetence, total disregard for his colleagues and abuse of the budgetary process.

Jibrin had claimed that Dogara, his deputy, Sulaimon Yussuff Lasun, House Minority Leader, Leo Ogor, and the House Chief Whip, Ado Doguwa selfishly allocated projects worth N40 billion out of N100 billion to their respective constituencies.

Namdas faulted Jibrin, claiming that it was the House leadership that actually aborted an attempt by Jibrin to inflate the budget by about N250 billion.

He further disclosed that the House has concluded plans to approach the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe Jibrin over the disappearance of billions of naira meant for development projects between 2011 and 2015.

Namdas argued that such an allocation does not tantamount to padding of the budget, adding that the zonal/constituency intervention projects have their origins in constitutional provisions as encapsulated in the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy requiring the government to ensure equitable distribution of resources and infrastructure.

Arguing that the powers of the National Assembly on appropriation are clearly spelt out in Sections 4, 59 and 80 (4) of the 1999 Constitution, he stated that the idea of zonal/constituency intervention projects arose as a result of the need to carry every part of the country along in the allocation of projects in the budget, and to address the imbalance in line with federal character principles as enshrined in the constitution.