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The House of Representatives has expressed its readiness to engage tax experts to brief it on the implications of the Tax Reform Bills currently before the National Assembly for consideration.
The deputy spokesman of the House, Mr Philip Agbese, disclosed this on Wednesday in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH in Abuja.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu and the Federal Executive Council recently introduced four executive bills aimed at streamlining the tax processes, establishing a unified revenue service, and simplifying financial obligations for businesses and citizens.
The reforms resulted from a months-long review of existing tax laws by the Taiwo Oyedele-led committee, which was inaugurated in August 2023. The committee’s recommendations were harmonised into four executive bills, which were transmitted to the National Assembly in September 2024.
Last week, the 36 state governors called for the withdrawal of the bills to allow for more consultations. This followed the earlier position taken by 19 state governors who rejected the bill on the grounds that it was against the interests of the North and the state governments.
Notwithstanding the position of the governors, the Presidency has insisted that the bills should be considered by Parliament, while not ruling out possible reviews by federal lawmakers.
Speaking with our correspondent on Monday, Agbese expressed the House’s readiness to engage Nigerians on the issue through Town Hall meetings.
He said, “Where necessary, we will bring in experts to dissect them line by line and understand what exactly Nigerians think about it. They (the executive bills) will be subjected to a Town Hall engagement with the citizens for their input. We are known for being the People’s House, and that mantra under the leadership of Speaker Tajudeen Abass will be sustained at all times.”
Also speaking, House Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda said the caucus had begun preliminary work on the bills before the 36 governors made their position known on the matter.
In a telephone interview with The PUNCH, the Peoples Democratic Party lawmaker said, “The minority caucus, even before the NEC meeting, had set up a team led by the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Appropriation, Mr Iduma Igariwey, to consider and come up with a position paper, which will be discussed by the caucus before the second reading of the bills.”
He assured that the minority caucus’s position would align with the national interest on the matter.
“The assurance is that the caucus will take a position that is in the best interest of the country and Nigerians. While we do not stand against citizens paying taxes, we do not believe in excessive taxation, as that will impoverish the country rather than grow the economy. We will rather strongly call for a reduction in public sector overhead costs and greater welfare for the lower class to reduce the gap between the lower and higher classes. In Nigeria today, we have both extremes,” he added.
