The National Assembly is set to pass the tax reform bills despite widespread opposition from the Northern region, says Seriake Dickson, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Ecology and Climate Change.
Speaking in Abuja on Monday, the senator likened the impending approval to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) passage, declaring, “Heaven did not fall. This tax reform bills will pass and heavens will not fall.”
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had on October 3, 2024, forwarded four tax reform bills to the National Assembly. The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and House Speaker, Tajuddeen Abbas, read the President’s letter during plenary sessions.
Tinubu noted that the bills aim to strengthen Nigeria’s fiscal institutions and align with his administration’s development agenda.
However, the bills have faced pushback from various groups in Northern Nigeria, including governors, traditional rulers, civil society organizations, and some federal lawmakers.
Last week, the Senate passed the bills for a second reading, while the House of Representatives has yet to take action.
Dickson dismissed fears of chaos during the planned public hearing, urging critics to present factual arguments.
“The tax bill is a proposed law like every other and it has to go through the normal legislative process,” he said.
The former Bayelsa State governor also highlighted the need to address disparities in tax allocations.
“Right now, taxes from Bayelsa State are paid to Lagos State, and I don’t want that to continue. When there is consumption of any goods or services from any state, it should be calculated and paid to that state,” Dickson stated.
He encouraged stakeholders to use the legislative process to address their concerns, saying, “There is an opportunity to review the tax laws, to correct the anomalies… It’s for them to raise those issues and bring the statistics. I don’t go by sentiments. I go by what is right and in the national interest.”
