Featured
Leverage On Traditional, New Media For Effective Publicity, NYSC Charges PPR, FOIA Officers
Joel Ajayi
The Overseer of the National Youth Service Corps, Mrs. Christy Uba, has charged on all the Press and Public Relations, Protocol as well as Freedom of information Act FOIA Desk Officers to leveraged on both the traditional and the new media to ensure effective publicity for the contributions of the Scheme to the socio-economic development the Scheme.
She stated this on Thursday in Abuja, while declaring open the 2022 NYSC Press and Public Relations, Protocol and FOIA Officers’ Workshop saying that the training is the smart way of increasing effectiveness and productivity of any organization.
The theme for this year’s workshop, “Enhancing the Corporate Image of NYSC: Quintessential Role of Public Relations Officers”.
According to her, this training programme is taking place in furtherance of Management’s commitment to building the capacity of Staff for higher productivity.
“The role of Public Relations Officers in the achievement of the NYSC mandate cannot be overemphasized. Over the years, officers in this cadre have undertaken the crucial tasks of projecting the good image of the Scheme, and played facilitating roles in its much-celebrated contributions to national unity and development.
“It is gratifying to note that the PR Officers have continued to earn accolades for the diligent discharge of their duties, including the professional management of our public functions.
“Even as we celebrate your numerous accomplishments, you must not rest on your oars, especially in view of the demanding nature of your schedules. As you are already aware, Public Relations practice is dynamic: responding appropriately to emerging challenges, and the peculiarities of the operating environment.
“Conscious of the need to bring you up to speed with evolving trends in corporate image management, Management has continued to provide avenues for the upgrade of your knowledge and skills. The inclusion of Protocol and Freedom of Information Act Trainings in this Workshop is to further sharpen your skills in these important areas thereby making the programme an all-round one.
“Let me also remind you of the need to continue to leverage on both the traditional and the new media to ensure effective publicity for the contributions of the Scheme to the socio-economic development of our dear country.”
She further urged them to step-up the monitoring of the social media so as to promptly correct misconceptions as well as fake stories fraudulent or mischievous persons may peddle about the Scheme.
In his welcome address, the Director Press and Public Relations Unit. Mr Eddy Megwa, said the Annual NYSC Press and Public Relations Officers’ Workshop has over the years served as a veritable platform for Officers of the Scheme, to acquire requisite knowledge on contemporary issues influencing the practice of the profession with a view to ensuring effective professional management of the corporate image of the Scheme.
“This training will enable the participants to stay afloat on their duties and ensure that nothing is left to chance in managing the image of the NYSC. It will also empower them with up-to-date information management strategies for engagement of the Scheme’s publics on our policies, programmes and activities.
“The quest for an enriched training, necessitated inclusion of training on protocol and Freedom of Information Act and the selection of seasoned professionals with impeccable backgrounds and knowledge in these critical aspects of corporate image management as our Resource Persons.
“We are therefore confident that at the end of this programme, the participants would be better equipped for optimal discharge of their professional responsibilities.”
He charged all participants to take advantage of the workshop to update their knowledge on modern trends in Public Relations practice.
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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