President Bola Tinubu has turned down requests by the National Economic Council (NEC) that the tax reform bill before the National Assembly be withdrawn for further consultation, saying rather than withdraw it, inputs can be made during public hearings.
Tinubu stated that the legislative process, which has already begun, provides an opportunity for inputs and necessary changes without withdrawing the bills from the National Assembly.
The president, who promised advice and recommendations from the NEC, an essential constitutional organ of government on economic matters. would continuously be respected, noted that the wider consultation recommended could be achieved during public hearings.
While urging the NEC to allow the process to take its full course, Tinubu welcomes further consultations and engagement with key stakeholders to address any reservations about the bills while the National Assembly considers them for passage.
He turned down their recommendations on Friday while commending the NEC members especially Vice President Kashim Shettima and the 36 State Governors, for their advice.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the president explained that the motive behind the Presidential Committee on Tax and Fiscal Policy Reform was to reposition the economy for better productivity and efficiency and make the operating environment for investment and businesses more conducive. This objective remains more critical even today than ever before.
Arguing that the bill were product of the committee’s several weeks of deliberation that started in August 2023, the president added that the Committee received inputs from various segments of society across the geopolitical zones, including trade associations, professional bodies, different Ministries and Government Agencies, Governors, traders, students, business owners, and the organised private sector.
According to him, the tax reform bills that emerged were distilled from the extensive work of the Presidential Committee.
“The tax bills before the National Assembly aim to streamline Nigeria’s tax administration processes, completely overhaul the nation’s tax operations, and align them with global best practices”.
“The bills’ overarching objective is to effectively coordinate federal, state, and local tax authorities, thereby eliminating the overlapping responsibilities, confusion, and inefficiency that have plagued tax administration in Nigeria for decades.
“Under existing laws, taxes like Company Income Tax (CIT), Personal Income Tax (PIT), Capital Gains Tax (CGT), Petroleum Profits Tax (PPT), Tertiary Education Tax (TET), Value-Added Tax (VAT), and other taxing provisions in numerous laws are administered separately, with individual legislative frameworks.
“The proposed reforms seek to consolidate these numerous taxes, integrating CIT, PIT, CGT, VAT, PPT, and excise duties into a unified structure to reduce administrative fragmentation.
“While there may be differences in approach or specific provisions of the new tax bills, what is not in contention is the need to review our tax laws and how we administer them to serve our overall national development agenda”.
The bills were the Nigeria Tax Bill which seeks to eliminate multiple taxation and make Nigeria’s economy more competitive by simplifying tax obligations for businesses and individuals nationwide.
Second bill is the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill (NTAB), a bill that proposes new rules governing the administration of all taxes in the country. Its objective is to harmonise tax administrative processes across federal, state and local jurisdictions to ease taxpayers’ compliance and enhance the revenue for all tiers of government.
Also, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill and it seeks to re-establish the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) as the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) to better reflect its mandate as the revenue agency for the entire federation, not just the Federal Government.
The fourth bill is the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill: This Bill proposes creating a Joint Revenue Board to replace the Joint Tax Board, covering federal and all state tax authorities. The fourth bill will also establish the Office of Tax Ombudsman under the Joint Revenue Board, protecting taxpayers’ interests and facilitating dispute resolution.
