Tax reform bills part of Tinubu’s campaign manifesto – Bwala

Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser on Policy Communication to President Bola Tinubu, says the controversial tax reform bills before the National Assembly is part of the President’s manifesto and campaign promises.

Daily Trust reports that the bills, particularly the proposed amendment to the distribution of Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue, have sparked widespread debate.

The bills are: The Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, which is expected to provide the fiscal framework for taxation in the country; and the Tax Administration Bill, which will provide a clear and concise legal framework for all taxes in the country and reduce disputes.

Others include: the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, which will repeal the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Act and establish the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill, which will create a tax tribunal and a tax ombudsman.

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Our correspondent also reports that the Presidency has been accused of being obsessed with the passage of the bill.

However, speaking on Trust Tv’s Sunday Politics programme, Bwala said it was not an obsession, but part of the president’s mandate.

“Remember when he went on campaign, he campaigned on those promises. And it is encapsulated in his manifesto, actually. So he is trying to make good his promise to the Nigerian people. And so there is no obsession there. It is passion to deliver on good governance.

“And the reason why you hear the outcry and the belief that the tax bill is against the North is because some stakeholders in the North lend their voice in that regard. In other words, people peddle the politicization of the bill because quite frankly, a lot of them have not looked at the bill. I mean, some of the proponents of the bill are Northerners,” Bwala said.

He said, “If you carefully look at that bill, actually, it is the harmonization of all the tax laws in the country to deliver efficient tax administration in Nigeria. Let me just tell you a few things about that. It is classified into four different enactments. You have the Nigerian tax bill, which is, of course, the model or the grown-up of all the tax administration.

“So it is, apart from the tax bill, you have the Nigerian tax administration bill. We have the revenue service establishment bill. We also have the joint revenue board establishment bill.

“In the tax bill, Nigerians will benefits a lot. For instance, the exemption of individuals earning below N800,000 from paying tax. Isn’t it wonderful? Because before now, even if you’re earning N800,000 or you’re earning below N800,000, you will have to pay certain tax.

“But in this tax administration, if your earning per annum is less than N800,000, you are not required to pay tax. And that has nothing to do with the north or the south. And those earning N50m, for example, will pay 25% of their income rate.

“But under the current law, even if it is N3.2m, you will still be required to pay tax. That is the exemption of business from paying income tax. If the business’s annual income is less than N50m, you also have the reduction of company income tax rate from 30 to 25.”

The presidential aide also listed some of the benefits of the harmonization of the tax bill.

“First, private citizens. Secondly, income earners, people who work, were working class. And the third one, those who do small-scale business, like the SMEs, because we need to encourage small and medium-scale businesses.

“And the fourth one, of course, companies that are either small or big in their own right. And then, of course, the coordination of tax, so that we do not have all these tax embellished in different laws that at the end of the day, the implementation or administration of the tax becomes incumbent on the Nigerian people,” Bwala said.