What National Assembly Should Do About Tax Reform Bills – Atiku Abubakar

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called for objectivity and transparency in the conduct of the public hearing being organised by the National Assembly over the controversial Tax Reform Bills.

Naijaonpoint reports that the proposed Tax Reform Bills by President Bola Tinubu have sparked widespread anger in Northern Nigeria, with regional groups and clerics demanding their suspension.

The four bills—Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024 (SB.583), Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024 (SB.584), Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, 2024 (SB.585), and Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024 (SB.586)—have already passed second reading in the Senate, despite mounting opposition.

The bills, presented by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, passed second reading on Thursday under the leadership of Senate President Godswill Akpabio. This came a day after Taiwo Oyedele, chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, appeared before the Senate to explain the bills’ objectives.

Reacting in a post on his X handle on Sunday, Atiku said transparency and objectivity are essential for promoting accountability, good governance, and public trust in policy-making.

He called on the NASS to revisit and make public the resolutions of the National Economic Council.

Atiku wrote: “I have followed the intense public discourse on the Tax Reform Bills with keen interest.

“Nigerians are united in their call for a fiscal system that promotes justice, fairness, and equity. They are loud and clear that the fiscal system we seek to promote must not exacerbate the uneven development of the federating units by enhancing the status of a few states while unduly penalising others.

“I call for objectivity and transparency in the conduct of the public hearing being organised by our representatives in the National Assembly. As a concerned stakeholder, I firmly believe that transparency and objectivity are essential for promoting accountability, good governance, and public trust in policy-making. The public hearing process must facilitate open and inclusive participation by all stakeholders, including Civil Society Organizations, traditional institutions, politicians, public officials, and subject matter experts.

“In this wise, I call on the NASS to revisit and make public the resolutions of the National Economic Council, a key stakeholder and an important organ of the state with the constitutional power to advise the President concerning the economic affairs of the Federation.

“The NASS must be appropriately guided and ensure that in the final analysis, the contents of the Bills align with the interests of the vast majority of Nigerians.”