Opinion

DESERVED HONOUR BE GIVEN TO THE MINISTER OF SPORTS DEVELOPMENT

Published

10 months ago

August 13, 2024

Fely Mammah Nwokorie

Is the sack of the Honourable Minister of Sports Development of the Federal Republic of Nigeria the best option now that the Olympics Games is still going with high hopes of our athelets determined to have our new National athem sang in France for proper representation of our country. The Hon. Minister Sen. John Owan has distinguished himself from other Sports Minister’s in a short time of his assumption of duty in the sector.

Is Favor Ofilli the worst misfortune that has been or faced in the ministry amidst other challenges that are gradually been addressed by the Minister? Is Favor Ofilli the only hope of the country in the on going Olympic Games. Should the mistake assumed to have been cursed by the NOC a reason to project the image of our proud country or presidency negatively in a disdain manner that is detrimental to the out side world. Are the games over or has the country lost confidence in other atheletes that also, have equal opportunities to represent the country in France.

The. Honourable Minister Senator John Owan Enoh, has remained the best significant personality in the sports sector in both presentation, sincerity of purpose, representation and administration; which the ministry has in a long while, recieved from the Federal Government without prejudice. Unlike the past Minister’s that would travel two weeks before the events and over stay their welcome after the events just to ensure thier retirement of unnecessary funds spending is accounted, for their selfish protection. Both the Honorable Minister and Permanent Secretary ensured that all logistics needed by the athelets, where readily available and their training tours funded before departing same time stipulated of the games. They associated themselves with the athletes to sort out their challenges which however, exposed the omission of Ofilli’s name from the 100m participants and they immedately queried the expensive ignorance of the NOC, AFN, and all responsible.

Sen. Enoh in less than two years in Sports Development has been able to turn sadness to joy in the lives of both the staff, stakeholders, able body and differently able athletes. There has not been a trace of much greed or self centerdness in him to attract the call of, Gara-Gombe’s prayer for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to recall the personality he single handedly chose to effect changes in the sector where youths have hope for a better tomorrow as well as opportunity to challenge thier peers in the area or Success with regards to the ongoing world event. Gara-Gombe’s request should be considered both as the highest insult on the President of Nigeria and also, a challenge to the Presidents wisdom, to chose an accepted personality by the people to lead them.

A man with integrity auth to know that this is a very challenging period for the President of Nigeria and in his love for the country offer solidarity of peaceful solutions and sustainability and not enviously ask for the position that he does fit into. Gara-Gombe should as a matter of urgency be banned from his intererence in Press Correspondence dissemination of rightful information to the general public on sporting activities more especially on the on going events. His prayer for the removal of our distinguished Minister is both distraction to the President and athletes.

Sen Enoh’s record mean while, speaks volum of his change mission and vision in the ministry. For over 30 years of hopelessness in the country’s African Cup of Nation ( AFCON), Sen. John Enoh’s glorified grace, brought renewal and retuned hopefullness to sports fans. African Games held in Ghana this year placed the country on the top most medals table despite 54 African Countries meant to participate in the event.

Can any one courageously say that our athletes did not participate in any of their qualifying tournament in preparation for the on going tournament? The most expected from the minister was to ensure money was available for the events and timely. The country’s athelets participated in the opening ceremony with their speakable regalians and have their proper placement in the games village camp in France.
Should the Honorable minister take responsibility of what sports professionals, Technical Directors & NOC where expected to ensure before the games? Although sports fans feel the pain of Favour Ofilli but has any person looked spritually to forsee her convenant with the gods on this event or is she the only noted person chosen to represent the country in the on going event?

Olympic is a World event and the ministry ensured that Nigeria’s Flag fly among others above all, very notable. I agree with late Nelson Mandela that” Sports has the power to change the world” I also, agree with African American Olympic Gold Medalist Ron Freeman that” Nigerians are some of the smartest humans on the planet”. But who has called for a reward to the Honourable Minister since his short term in office with his quick understanding of the sector’s politics, technicalities and jambores of events. Is less than 2 years in the sector enough for him to be a professional or enough time to fix things right as expected. Sen. Enoh has remarkably, withdrawn all sports cases in court, recounciled stakeholders differences, paid outstanding allowances, funded most federations tournaments, querried monies not properly accounted, maintained trainings in all the departments and above all, have regular Town Hall meetings with his staff to enable him address their challenges where need be.

Suffix it to say that it is very uncredited to use the case of Favor Ofilli to launch a long reserved attack credible Minister that deserves loud ovation from Nigerians. Although the country has not gotten any Gold but likes of Tobi Amusu and the Para -lympians are been looked up to for dignifying medals. Our amiable Hon. Minister notified Nigerians when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu released money for both the Olympic and Paralympics Events.
“For whom the gods want to kill, they first make mad”. And “For whom God wants to bless, He Blesses”.

Fely Mammah Nwokorie
Press Officer,
Ministry of Sports Dev.

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Featured

Tax Reform Bill Passage: New Tax Laws, Better Nigeria

Published

4 weeks ago

May 9, 2025

The Gleamer

By Arabinrin Aderonke

Nigeria must work; this is the vision we have held onto for so long. When the news came that the Senate had passed all four tax reform bills, it was one of those moments you stop and ask yourself, is this really happening? For years, Nigeria’s tax system has been a source of frustration, something we all got used to criticizing. Truthfully, it was not just tax. From electricity to education to healthcare, we have long complained about the failure of government systems.

On top of that, Nigeria remained tied to the unstable global oil market, leaving us with unpredictable revenue and a shrinking ability to fund our future. That is exactly why we must keep believing in the idea of a new Nigeria. And this time, it is not just another round of promises, this is action.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu understood that to truly rebuild Nigeria, we needed a tax system that would create sustainable revenue, spread the burden fairly, and give every Nigerian, rich or poor, north or south, a reason to trust government again. That is what led to the introduction of the tax reform bills in 2024. It has taken months of serious policy work, consultation, and courage. Now, with the National Assembly passing all four bills, the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Nigeria Tax Administration (Procedure) Bill 2024, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill 2024, and the Joint Tax Board (Establishment) Bill 2024, we are seeing decisions that could finally loosen Nigeria’s dependence on oil and give states the resources they need to grow.

One of the features is the new VAT sharing formula. Under the proposed structure, 50 percent of Value Added Tax revenue will be shared equally among all states, 20 percent will be distributed based on population, and 30 percent will be distributed according to actual consumption. It is a formula designed to balance fairness with performance, giving each state a stake while also encouraging economic activity and good governance.

The Senate also made it known that the VAT rate will remain at 7.5 percent, resisting pressure to increase it. For Nigerians, that means no new burden added to goods and services. But more importantly, the bills approved also provided for the continued funding of development agencies such as the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA). These are the institutions that support learning, research, and innovation across the country, and their survival is necessary for the future of the Nigeria we all want.

Another part of the bill is the plan to turn the Federal Inland Revenue Service into the Nigeria Revenue Service (Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill). But this is not just a name change. It is a coordinated effort to build a system that supports states, strengthens local government revenue, and makes tax collection more transparent.

Dr. Zacch Adedeji, Executive Chairman of FIRS, has led the redesign of the agency and introduced many measures aimed at improving tax collection across the country, and even these Tax Reform Bills are one. If anyone has earned respect in this space, it is him. His work shows that reforms are possible when people in charge are ready to do better.

As it stands, all four tax reform bills have been passed, and these laws are now in place. This means Nigeria has completed what many consider the most needed tax reform in years.

The process now moves to the harmonization stage, where both the Senate and House of Representatives will come together to resolve any differences in their versions of the bills. Once they reach an agreement, the bills will be sent to the President for his final approval. After the President signs them into law, they will be published in the official gazette, making them official. From there, the Federal Inland Revenue Service, which will be renamed the Nigeria Revenue Service, will take the lead in implementation. With the capable Tax Boss, Dr. Zacch, we can be sure that the results will exceed expectations.

This is the Renewed Hope Nigerians have been waiting for. The changes are here, these reforms give us the chance to do things right!

Arabinrin Aderonke Atoyebi is the technical assistant on broadcast media to the executive chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service

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