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COVID-19: US-based group petitions NASS over FG’s delay in establishing disabilities agency to address members’ plights
Amidst the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Nigeria, the United States (US)-based Nigerians living with disabilities have petitioned the leadership of the National Assembly over the Federal Government’s delay in establishing an agency to oversee the affairs of the people living with disabilities in the country.
The groups; Organisations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), Equal Rights for Persons with Disabilities International, Inc. (ERPWDI), FESTAC-USA, Inc., Kaysom Holding, Inc., Center for Advocacy and Citizens with Disabilities, among other allies, stated that the delay to set up the agency was in contravention with the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018, otherwise known as Nigerians with Disabilities Act (NDA)).
The petition was jointly signed by Chief Eric Ndubueze Ufom, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ERPWDI and Mrs. Ngozi Pauline Ikebuaku, Executive Secretary of the organisation, on behalf of the coalition of US-based non-profit bodies advocating for the over 31 million Nigerians living with disabilities.
It would be recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari had, on Jan. 23, 2019, signed the Disability Bill into law with Section 31 of the Act, providing for the setting up of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities with Executive Secretary as the head.
Also, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, and Speaker, House of Representative, Femi Gbajabiamila, had, on April 7, met with the the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Hajia Sadiya Umar Farouq, against the backdrop of the ongoing Federal Government intervention initiatives aimed at reducing the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on the most vulnerable Nigerians.
The leadership of the National Assembly had faulted the way the Social Investment Programme (SIP) of the Federal Government was being implemented and called for an enabling legislation in line with global best practices.
Lawan and Gbajabiamila made it clear that the SIP which was established in 2016 under the Presidency but which is now under the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs needed a reform to make it more efficient and effective to addressing the problems of the poorest Nigerians.
Reacting in the petition, the group called on Lawan, Gbajabiamila, other principal members of the legislature, including the Clerk of the National Assembly, Mr. Mohammed Sani-Omolori, to come to the rescue of their members living in the country at this period of COVID-19.
The coalition urged the legislative arm to prevail on the executive towards ensuring the establishment of the commission that would help to oversee the affairs of the 31 million of their members living in the country in accordance with the law, the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), 2030 Agenda.
The group alleged that the intervention by various governments to cushion Nigerians plights in the country during this disease outbreak had left out the larger part of their members.
“On behalf of over 31 million Nigerians and one billion persons with disabilities worldwide, 10 million Almajiris and millions of victims of terrorism, bandits, kidnapping, armed robbery, man-made and natural disasters, climate change, waste, transboundary, indoors and outdoors air pollutions and their massive health effects which causes permanent disabilities to the victims if they are not dead, we, the Nigerian-Americans with disabilities living in the United States, move to send this heartfelt very thank you note to the National Assembly’s members for the extra productive emergency meeting of the joint National Assembly with the Hon. Minister for Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Developments.
“Therefore Sir, the main focus of this petition is on the valid, arguable and verifiable subjects of civil, human, disability and constitutional questions/issues, which you discussed and clearly stated.
“We humbly and respectfully ask you to please Sir, patiently study the outcome of your meeting and our ‘COVID-19-May Workers Day: PART ONE: Chronological Order Historic Documentary Report/Petition Against the Federal Republic of Nigeria to Demand for the Immediate Establishment of an Independent Implementation Commission for the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities.’
“COVID-19 Pandemic: Therefore, we are very angry about how the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been acting during this ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic, by continuing with Nigeria’s usual well documented, known and recognised, over one Century’s old (Since 1914 Amalgamation of Nigeria), bad practices of gross marginalisation, disenfranchisement, discrimination, denial of programmes and services, etc, of Nigerians with disabilities under their direct cares,” they said.
The group, which admitted that the National Assembly was correct in its observation that the SIP needed a reform to make it more efficient and effective, said it was disheartening that none of the real leaders of 31 million Nigerians with disabilities, 10 million Almajiris, millions of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and others, were contacted by the Presidency and the ministry.
Business
Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

Ismaila Ahmad Abdullahi Ph.D
The public hearings conducted recently by the two Chambers of the National Assembly have elicited positive responses from a broad spectrum of Nigerians, cutting across regional interest groups, government agencies, civil society groups, concerned individuals, the academia, and Labour Unions, among diverse others. Contrary to a few dissensions hitherto expressed in the media, almost all the stakeholders who spoke during the week-long sessions were unanimous in their declaration that the hallowed Chambers should pass the tax reform bills after a clean-up of the grey areas.
The public hearings were auspicious for all Nigerians desirous of economic growth and fiscal responsibility. They were also a watershed moment for the Federal Inland Revenue Service, which had been upbeat about the tax reforms. Indeed, the public hearings had rekindled hope in the tenets of democracy that guarantee freedom of expression and equitable space for cross-fertilisation of ideas. Without gainsaying the fact, the tax reform bills have been unarguably about the most thought-provoking issues in Nigeria today, drawing variegated perspectives and commentaries from even unlikely quarters such as the faith-based leaders, student bodies, and trade unions, which speaks much about the importance of the bills.
In the build-up to the public hearings, not many people believed that the bills would make it to the second reading, much less the public hearings. Even the Northern stakeholders who seemed unlikely to support the passage of the bills have softened their stance and have given valuable suggestions that would enrich the substance of the bills. The Arewa Consultative Forum came to the public hearings well-prepared with a printed booklet that addressed their concerns. It concluded with an advisory that the bills should be “Well planned, properly communicated, strategically implemented and ample dialogue and political consensus allowed for the reforms to be accepted.”
The concerns of ACF ranged from the composition of the proposed Nigeria Revenue Service Board as contained in Part 111, Section 7 of the bill, the unlimited Presidential power to exempt/wave tax payment as proposed in Section 75(1) of the bill, the family income or inheritance tax as contained in Part 1, Section 4(3) of the bill, to the issues around development levy and VAT. On the development levy, the ACF stated that unless the Federal Government is considering budgetary funding for TETFUND, NASENI and NITDA, it does not see the “wisdom behind the plan to replace (them) with NELFUND”.
The position of the North was equally reinforced by the Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria, Northern Elders Forum, Kano State Government, Professor Auwalu Yadudu, and the FCT Imams. Like the ACF, these stakeholders lent their respective voices to the Section on the Inheritance Tax in Part 1 of the bill and the use of the term ‘ecclesiastical’, which, in their views, undermines certain religious rights and beliefs. The Kano State Government, represented by Mahmud Sagagi, affirmed that “we support tax modernisation” but cautioned that “we must ensure that this process does not come at the expense of states’ constitutional rights and economic stability”. Professor Auwalu Yadudu, a constitutional law professor, drew attention to the use of the ‘supremacy clause’ and cautioned that the repeated use of “notwithstanding” in the bills would undermine the supremacy of the Nigerian constitution if passed as such.
Other stakeholders that made contributions at the sessions included the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs Service, and a host of others. While most of their concerns bordered on technical issues requiring fine-tuning, they were unanimous in their support for the bills. They aligned with the position of the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, Ph.D. and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, which is that the extant tax laws and fiscal regulations are obsolete necessitating reforms aimed at creating a fair and equitable tax and fiscal space to grow Nigeria’s economy.
In one of the sessions, Dr Zaach Adedeji expounded on the criss-cross of trade activities in the Free Trade Zone whereby companies misuse tax waivers as exporters to sell their goods or services in the Customs Area at an amount usually less than the price the operators in the Customs Area who pay VAT and other taxes sell theirs thereby disrupting business transactions. This way, the operators in the Free Trade Zone shortchange the government in paying their due taxes by circumventing extant regulations, which are inimical to the economy’s growth.
Overall, the presentations were forthright, foresighted, and helpful in elucidating the issues contained in the bills. According to the statistics read out at the end of the hearings at the Senate, 75 stakeholders were invited, 65 made submissions, and 61 made presentations. At the House of Representatives 53 stakeholders made presentations. By all means, this is a fair representation. Given the presentations, it is evident that the National Assembly has gathered enough materials to guide its deliberations on the bills. As we look forward to the passage of the bills, we commend the leadership of the National Assembly for their unwavering commitment to making the bills see the light of the day.
Abdullahi is the Director of the Communications and Liaison Department, FIRS.
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