By Adedapo Adesanya
President Bola Tinubu has directed the Federal Ministry of Justice and the National Assembly to work on concerns raised in the controversial tax reform bills.
This follows criticisms from statesmen, with the most vocal criticism coming from the northern region, who believe that the reforms will further affect the region.
President Tinubu has now mandated the Justice Ministry to look into the concerns raised and work with the leadership of the National Assembly to finetune the rough edges in the bills.
“It is pertinent to state that the government has nothing sinister to warrant the suggestion that the process is being rushed. In line with the established legislative procedure, the Federal General welcomes meaningful inputs that can address whatever grey areas there may be in the bill,” the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris, said in a statement.
“In this vein, President Tinubu has already directed the Federal Ministry of Justice and relevant officials who worked on the drafts to work closely with the National Assembly to ensure that all genuine concerns have been addressed before the bills are passed.”
The statement noted that President Tinubu is committed to accountability to the Nigerian people and described the debates generated by the bills as “welcomed, and commendable”.
“It is very inspiring to see Nigerians from all walks of life coming out to express their views and opinions on these matters of critical national importance,” he said. “This is the very essence and meaning of democracy”.
“In the spirit of democratic engagement, there should be no room for name-calling or the injection of unnecessary ethnic and regional slurs into this important national conversation,” the minister said.
Although some of the arguments against the bills are that they were targeted at impoverishing some states, especially in the north, the minister has dismissed the claim which he labelled as “fake news” and “ misinformation”.
“The fiscal reforms will not impoverish any state or region of the country, neither will they lead to the scrapping or weakening of any federal agencies,” he added.
When passed, the minister said, these bills are expected to “bring relief to tens of millions of hardworking Nigerians” and equally “empower and position our states and the 774 local governments for sustainable growth and development”.
“On top of this necessary foundation, the resources being conserved and realized from these reforms will be invested in critical infrastructure (healthcare, education, transportation, digital technology, etc) and in social investments that will benefit all Nigerians and ensure that no one is left behind,” the Information Minister’s statement read.