Reforms - NEWS AGENCY OF NIGERIA

Ismail Abdulaziz
Nov, Tue, 2024

Tinubu’s reform agenda most credible for reforms- Okupe

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By Emmanuel Mogbede

A former Labour Party (LP) Chieftain, Dr Doyin Okupe, has described President Bola Tinubu administration’s reform agenda as the most credible compared to those of other presidential candidates in the 2023 presidential election.

Okupe, also a former Spokesman to former President Goodluck Johnathan, stated this while assessing Tinubu administration’s reform agenda.

“Though I never supported Tinubu ahead of the election; he is not my friend and we were not in the same party, in retrospect however, his reform agenda is the most credible.

“The Renewed Hope Agenda he (Tinubu) brought is one that can address, and is addressing, the country’s current challenges,” he said.

According to him, the renewed hope agenda is being meticulously applied by the president.

“Tinubu has a better policy document than any of his two rivals during the 2023 presidential election.

“Atiku Abubakar of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is an experienced, knowledgeable and thorough-bred politician.

“I know that for a fact that he also came with a testament that would have been binding on him and Nigerians.

“But when you put the testament side-by-side the current reality on ground, it is not applicable,” the politician said.

He stated that Atiku’s testament, documents and preparations were hinged on some loans which he thought he could use to sort out some things if elected, stressing they were all theoretical.

This, Okupe said, was especially so, because by the time President Muhammadu Buhari was leaving office, no international financial institution was ready to borrow Nigeria money again.

Okupe said that if such institutions were ready to borrow Nigeria money, Buhari wouldn’t have gone to print money just at the tail end of his administration.

“So the premise Atiku placed his testament on was sinking and it can’t work.

“As for Peter Obi of Labour Party, he did not given any document to Nigerians that he was going to work on.

“In Labour Party, we didn’t have a document that we could adopt as a policy document for what was going on.

“All we were saying was that we wanted to take Nigeria from consumption to production; good rethorics, but it was not grounded either in policy development or principle application,” he said.

Okupe noted that the announcement of fuel subsidy removal by Tinubu on his inauguration day was a mere confirmation of an event that had happened under Buhari’s administration.

“Upon assumption of office, Tinubu addressed the issues in the country’s foreign exchange where some people were feeding fat on our foreign exchange earnings, using their contacts in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),” he said.

Okupe also noted that Tinubu implemented the student loan and consumer protection programmes, providing loans to low income earners in a systematic manner.

He recalled that the president paid off some debts that were going to cripple the country’s economy.

“Two months after getting into government, he put up a committee to look into tax reform which was in his agenda.

“This man (Tinubu) has a systematic, reliable, focused and applicable agenda that can take Nigeria to enviable heights,” he said. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by ‘Wale Sadeeq

Tosin Kolade
Nov, Tue, 2024

General News

Saudi crown prince praises Tinubu’s reforms

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By Salif Atojoko

Prince Mohammed Al Saud, the Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia, has assured Nigeria of support in its economic reform programmes.

The Crown Prince gave the assurance during a meeting with President Bola Tinubu on the sidelines of the joint Arab-Islamic Summit in Riyadh, Mr Bayo Onanuga, the president’s spokesman, said in a statement.

He said the two leaders explored potential areas for cooperation, particularly oil and gas, agriculture, infrastructure and the constitution of the Saudi-Nigeria Business Council.

“Nigeria wants an agreement with the Saudi government over a proposed five billion dollars bilateral trade facility between the two countries.

“The Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company (SALIC) invested $1.24 billion in 2022 to acquire a 35.43 per cent stake in Olam Agri, one of Nigeria’s leading agricultural firms.

“Talks are being held so that SALIC can have more stake in the company.

The Saudi hoped the investment would make Olam one of the biggest agro-allied businesses in the world,” said Onanuga.

He said the Crown Prince commended President Tinubu’s economic reforms, noting similarities with steps taken to strengthen Saudi Arabia’s stability and development when he became Prime Minister.

“He also assured Nigeria of his support and promised to motivate his team to realise the various areas of partnerships discussed at the meeting,” said the President’s spokesman. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chinyere Joel-Nwokeoma

Tosin Kolade
Oct, Thu, 2024

General News

Onanuga addresses misconceptions on tax reform

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By Salif Atojoko

Mr Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, has addressed the misconceptions surrounding the tax reform initiated by the current administration.

He noted that the Northern Governors’ Forum on Oct. 28, led by Gov. Muhammed Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State, expressed opposition to the new derivation-based model for Value-Added Tax (VAT) distribution in the tax reform bills before the National Assembly.

He said the meeting also had traditional rulers from the region in attendance, led by Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, the Sultan of Sokoto, Onanuga said this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja.

He explained that the tax reform bills, endorsed by President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council, aimed to streamline Nigeria’s tax administration processes, enhance efficiency, and eliminate redundancies.

“These reforms emerged after an extensive review of existing tax laws. The National Assembly is considering four executive bills designed to transform and modernise Nigeria’s tax landscape.

“First is the Nigeria Tax Bill, which aims to eliminate unintended multiple taxation and make Nigeria’s economy more competitive by simplifying tax obligations for businesses and individuals nationwide.

“Second, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill (NTAB) 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 for ease of compliance for taxpayers in all parts of the country,” he said.

According to him, the third bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, seeks to rename the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) as the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS).

Onanuga assured that the reforms would not increase taxes, lead to job losses, or absorb existing departments’ duties, instead, they aimed to optimise and simplify tax frameworks, ensuring a more equitable distribution of tax obligations.

He said the reforms also sought to consolidate multiple taxes into a unified structure, reducing administrative fragmentation.

Regarding the proposed derivation-based VAT distribution model, Onanuga explained that the new proposal aimed to create a fairer system, considering the place of supply or consumption for relevant goods and services.

He said the reform would benefit states in the Northern region that produced VAT-exempt goods, ensuring they did not lose out on revenue.

“These reforms are crucial to improving Nigerians’ lives and were not intended to undermine any part of the country, Onanuga stated.

He said the bills would overhaul the country’s tax systems, generating revenue for all tiers of government to fund development projects.(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Abiemwense Moru

Tosin Kolade
Oct, Wed, 2024

Economy/Business

FIRS allays fears over reforms, says no new taxes

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By Naomi Sharang

Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, has allayed the fears of Nigerians on possible introduction of new taxes through proposed tax reform laws.

Adedeji made this known during an interactive session with members of the Senate Committee on Finance in Abuja on Tuesday.

He assured Nigerians that the tax reform laws would not entail introduction of new taxes or increase in the already existing ones.

“Tax reform will not introduce any tax or increase the percentage of the existing ones but it will reduce the number of taxes being paid by Nigerians.

“No agency will be merged in the process of carrying out the reform and no job will be taken from anybody.

“The tax reform basically seeks to increase the simplicity and efficiency of tax administration in Nigeria,” he said.

Adedeji said that there were four executive bills already forwarded to both chambers of the National Assembly to legalise the reform.

The bills, according to him, include: Nigeria Tax Bill, Nigeria Tax Administration Act (amendment) bill, Nigeria Revenue Service bill and Joint Revenue Board (establishment ) bill.

Adedeji said that the four bills, when passed, would, among others, help to harmonise the multiple tax laws in the country.

“They will drive efficiency and modernisation, simplify tax laws and ensure synergy among the agencies involved.

“The bills will also increase efficiency and effectiveness in government savings, promote transparency and integrity in revenue collection, align with international standards and broaden Nigeria’s tax base,” he said.

When asked why FIRS, as contained in one of the bills, would be changed to Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Adedeji said the present name of the agency did not cover the scope of its services.

“Like the Value Added Tax (VAT), 85 per cent are remitted to states while the federal government gets the remaining 15 per cent,” he said.

In his remarks, Chairman of the committee, Sen. Sani Musa said that the purpose of the interactive session was for FIRS to update the committee on what the tax reform bills were aiming at.

“Tax reforms lie at the heart of government’s agenda and require constructive inputs from all stakeholders,” Musa said.

He commended the FIRS boss for meeting up with the revenue targets set in the fiscal year, even as he urged him to go beyond the target. (NAN) www.nannews.ng

Edited by Kevin Okunzuwa and ‘Wale Sadeeq