A former Governor of Niger State and ex-chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, Babaginda Aliyu, has taken a swipe at those against the tax reform bills.

According to him, those against it have not taken their time to study the bill.

The bills, including the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024, and the Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024, have sparked widespread debate since their introduction to the National Assembly.

During a meeting on October 28, governors of the 19 northern states under the platform of the Northern Governors Forum had rejected the new derivation-based model for Value Added Tax distribution outlined in the tax reform bills.

Days later, the National Economic Council called for the bills’ withdrawal, urging the president to allow more consultations.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony for the Executive Intelligence Management Course 17 at the National Institute for Security Studies in Abuja on Saturday, Aliyu also criticised the government for poor communication about the policy.

Aliyu added that the citizens need to understand that no policy benefits everyone equally.

He said, “I was speaking to the NSA when we were in the common room, and I said to him, look, many of the people debating the tax bill have not read it. But again, there is the problem of communication; the government should speak more when the majority of the people are not literate. You should be the first to speak on any major policy, particularly one that will bring changes so that people can understand it.


“People can know that there is no policy that will come to somebody; if the majority comes and one person is disturbed, you can only tell him. But you cannot say because of one person, the policy cannot be taken. So communication is very, very important.”

Speaking at the event, Vice President Kashim Shettima highlighted the evolving nature of global threats, including cyber warfare and disinformation, calling for innovative responses and a redefinition of security paradigms.

Represented by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, the vice president also stressed that technology must serve as a tool for progress, not a weapon of destruction.

“The security issues we face—from terrorism and transnational crime to climate migration and cyber warfare—transcend borders.

“Your journey through this institution has equipped you not only to defend but to build alliances that honour our shared humanity. Learning is the gateway to finding lasting solutions to complex problems.

“Our world shrinks every day, and no challenge in one nation can be isolated from others. The social and economic tensions we must douse as leaders cannot be addressed with archaic ideas,” he said.


He urged the graduands to transform crises into opportunities for stability and growth, describing the current era as standing “at the confluence of opportunities and vulnerabilities.

Melagros:
COMRADES, it is obvious that this tax bill has come to stay, it's like those who are against it are wasting their time

Paraman:


https://punchng.com/ex-niger-gov-condemns-opposition-to-tax-bills-blames-government/?utm_source=telegram&utm_medium=social

Frigga13:


Come to stay … how ?

Don’t worry.. events will soon overtake this matter ..

The bill is dead already… except those sections is purged ..

Na time will tell

Frigga13:


Come to stay … how ?

Don’t worry.. events will soon overtake this matter ..

The bill is dead already… except those sections is purged ..

Na time will tell

gabbytabby:
People wanting to eat where they did not sow always want everything to be given to them on a platter of gold.

Only Una go win all of the time kwo. You now have development commission and none is complaining.

Bizaustine:
If no be se the person wey dey front the bill na clueless FAILURE

All the policies wey dey him head na ebi mpka wa everywhere for the Country e dey end.

God save Nija from the hands of T-pain.

Paraman:


https://punchng.com/ex-niger-gov-condemns-opposition-to-tax-bills-blames-government/?utm_source=telegram&utm_medium=social

Sheuns:


Did Osun state sow (oil) in the Delta region that they reap (revenue) from?

shiffynaani:
Northern hegemony has come to a sad, abrupt end. They didn't see it coming

After the passage of this bill, they'll get on their feet by hook or crook and get their asses to work, think on their feet like their smart southern counterparts, and find a way to attract investors

The two-headed monster called terrorism they created will now slowly die a peaceful death Goodtalk

mannobi:
The North West and the North East are the ones lamenting about this reform. Can we now say that they are the lazy regions?
I wonder why a state like kano can not utilise it's huge population for developmental purpose or than to collect allocation and win election. The North West especially must change it's ways of towards revenue generation. This is 21st century.

givedemwotowoto:
In the last election, House of Assembly passed the electoral reform bill and “conveniently” forgot to make electronic transmission of votes required. INEC assured the whole nation countless times that ONLY electronic transmission of votes will be used during the election. We all know what happened afterwards.

We don’t have a problem with tax reform, it’s a good thing, but the VAT reform part of this bill is suspicious and we’re asking for transparency. Our simple question is, if this VAT reform is intended to help low VAT generating states get more VAT revenue share, how did you come about that conclusion? Show us the data that supports that claim.

In August 2024, Abia state generated N663 million in VAT but received N5 billion after revenue share. Show us data which shows that in August 2024, if companies in Abia had paid VAT to Abia instead of their headquarters in Lagos, Abia would’ve generated X amount of money, and received N6 billion in VAT. That’s all we’re asking. Answer this simple question. Nigerians have been tricked countless times.

Why is this important? States like Abia are oil producing states, and after sharing most of their oil revenue to other states, you now want those states to keep most of their VAT revenue? What is good for the goose is good for the gander.

I wrote about this in an earlier post using Rivers and Lagos as my case study. If Rivers generates N100 billion from its oil wells, it gets only N19 billion after revenue share, but if Lagos generates N100 billion from VAT, you want Lagos to get N36 billion after revenue share?

Here is the post: https://www.nairaland.com/8284004/vat-reform-how-proposed-vat

cjudy:
Yoruba Muslim said it’s the Igbos that are using the Northerners to disrupt the bill

Frigga13:


Come to stay … how ?

Don’t worry.. events will soon overtake this matter ..

The bill is dead already… except those sections is purged ..

Na time will tell