The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, on Monday said not up to 30 percent of Nigerians pay tax to the government even though every citizen expects the provision of infrastructure, efficient education and security, among other social amenities.
Akpabio stated this in Abuja, when he declared open the public hearing on the tax reform bills forwarded to both chambers of the National Assembly on October 3, 2024, by President Bola Tinubu.
Akpabio said the reforms were necessary as the nation cannot continue to do the same thing repeatedly and expect different results.
He pledged that the National Assembly would improve on its oversight functions once the bills were passed to ensure that taxpayers’ resources are spent judiciously by the government.
He said the public hearing should be used to think of a better Nigeria, condemning leaders who were condemning the proposed legislations when they had not even read them.
Akpabio said, “This is part of the ways we can diversify the economy by making sure that we get it right as a nation.
“I don’t think that at the moment, up to 30 percent of Nigerians pay tax. Yet, 100 percent of Nigerians want good roads, and other infrastructure.
“They want effective train services. They even want Nigeria to be modernised in a hurry but those things need money to be able to put them in place.
“Most Nigerians do not want to pay tax but at the end of the tax bills’ passage it would be easier for everybody to pay tax whether you like it or not.
“We would also oversight the executive arm of government to make sure that whatever revenue comes into the purse of the government is well utilised. This is part of the ways we can diversify the economy.”
Akpabio urged the participants and Nigerians to get copies of the bills and x-ray them properly instead of relying on social media.
He said, “The tax reform bills we are discussing today are not just about revenue collection—they are about fostering economic growth and ensuring social equity.
“We recognise the misconceptions and concerns surrounding taxation, and we are determined to pass laws that truly benefit the majority of Nigerians.
“Oversight is a key function of government, and we are committed to ensuring that all revenue collected is transparently and effectively utilised for national development.”
Stakeholders including the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; the Attorney-General of the Federation and the Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
Others were the Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji; Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, (NSC), Adewale Adeniyi, made contributions on the occasion.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East) said about 71 different groups of stakeholders were invited for the public hearing.
He said Tinubu had challenged the Senate to give him workable laws from the bills.
Musa said, “I met President Bola Ahmed Tinubu two days ago on the tax reform bills and he told me that, ‘Mr. Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, go and do the needful.’
“Give me a law that is workable from the tax reform bills, which I forwarded to the Senate and the House of Representatives in October last year.”
He said further: “That request by Mr. President came at a very auspicious time of this public hearing on the tax reform bills which are not meant to add burden to any section of the country or give undue advantage to any section as well.”
Speaking on behalf of the federal government’s economic team, the head, Edun, said the tax reform bills were crucial to the nation’s economic growth.
Edun added: “There is a need now for this all-important reform as part of Mr. President’s economic agenda.
“It is a bold step, another bold step because we are all privy to the reforms that have been made over the last 20 months or so.
“We can all see the progress that has been made, the success that we are witnessing in terms of the economy growing, the reserves growing, the inflation stabilising and the budget deficit being under control, and in particular, food prices.
“So, the new objectives of this reforms is that as the economy grows, so it must arrive at, we must modernise our tax laws, enhance compliance, broaden the tax base and create an environment that fosters investment and job creation.
“So the reforms are going to create equity, efficiency, economic growth, and critically today, we are here to have feedback from the stakeholders, from the public at large and that, is the point of this particular, today’s sitting.
“To ensure that all views are heard and all stakeholders are carried along.”
Various stakeholders threw their weights behind the hitherto contentious bills including the Arewa Think Tank led by its convener, Muhammad Alhaji Yakubu, who debunked insinuation that the northern part of the country was against the proposed laws.
The bills are (i) The Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, (ii) Nigerian Tax Administration Bill 2024, ( iii) Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill 2024 and (iv) the Joint Revenue Board Bill 2024.
The Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari , said the entire oil and gas industry was well disposed to the reform.
Kyari said, “The proposed tax reform bills to us in the NNPC are very necessary enhancement of growth of the economy through more efficient and effective tax collection mechanism.
“As the largest taxpayer in Nigeria, the NNPC has studied the reform bills, and found the proposals to be reasonable and necessary.”
In his presentation, the Chairman, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Mohammed Shehu, deviated from his earlier stance on the bills by supporting them fully.
He said, “RMAFC is in support of the proposed tax reform but wants adjustments in the area of Value Added Tax (VAT) distribution to sub-nationals.
“We hope that the proposed reform will address the issue of endless revenue remittance reconciliation with NNPCL and others.”
The Chairman, Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Victor Muruako, also supported the proposed reform bills by declaring that they are in tandem with the spirit and letters of the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007.
The representative of the President, Supreme Council for Sharia in Nigeria, Prof. Mohammed Bello Dogarawa, debunked the insinuation that the north was against the bills.
