A bill prescribing a levy of N5 per litre on any volume of petrol and diesel products imported into Nigeria and on non-locally refined petroleum products is likely to pass the third reading at the senate and passed into law next week.
Under the proposed law, end users (motorists/consumers) would pay N5 tax on every litre of fuel they but at any fuel station.
If the bill scales the hurdle, a litre of premium motor spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol, which currently sells for N145 would increase to N150. The price hike would also affect aviation fuel, diesel and kerosene.
The bill was listed on the Order Paper, yesterday, but was stepped down at the last minute.
The report of the bill titled, ‘National Road Fund’, was to be presented by the Senate committee chairman on Works, Kabiru Gaya from Kano State.
In the bill, the Senate is also proposing a 10 per cent user charge per vehicle on any federal road designated as a toll road. The payment is not applicable to roads under the Public Private Partnership arrangement.
The Red Chamber, as part of its recommendations, is proposing an “inter-state mass transit user charge of 0.5 per cent deductible from fares paid by passengers to commercial mass transit operators on inter-state roads.
“There shall be a road fund charge of 0.5 per cent on the assessed value of any vehicle imported at any time into Nigeria. There shall be lease, license or other fees which shall be 10 per cent of the revenue accruing from lease or licence or other fees pertaining to non-vehicular road usage along any federal road and collected by the Federal Roads Agency.’
According to the report, “the legislation, when passed, will contribute positively to the economic growth of the nation and impact positively on the lives of Nigerians and deliver a road sector that will be a model for other countries.”
The report of the committee, a copy of which was obtained by Daily Sun, was signed by 15 senators with Gaya as chairman and Clifford Ordia as vice.
Others are Mao Ohuabunwa, Bukar Abba Ibrahim, Biodun Olujimi, Ben Bruce, Gilbert Nnaji, Abubakar Kyari, Ibrahim Danbaba, Mustapha Bukar, Ahmed Ogembe, Sani Mustapha and Buruji Kashamu.
Meanwhile, the Senate has suspended the consideration of a report of its Committee on Works on a bill tagged, “National Roads Authority” over the inability of lawmakers to reconcile their differences on certain grey areas.
Following the suspension, the Senate has mandated the committee to do a more thorough job, by accommodating all the divergent views expressed by lawmakers.
more at http://www.akelicious.com/2017/06/nigerian-senate-mulls-tax-on-fuel.html