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NYSC @ 50: FG Hails Corps Members On National Development

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Joel Ajayi

The Federal Government has commended the contributions of National Youth Service Corps in diverse areas to the overall development of the country.


It added that the Scheme in almost fifty years of it’s existence has remained a strong tool for socio-economic development and national unity.


The Minister for Youth and Sports Development, Mr Sunday Dare stated this on Tuesday in his address at the Opening Ceremony of the 2023 NYSC Annual Management Conference with the theme; “Optimizing the Operations of NYSC at 50 for National Development”,held in Abuja.
Dare said there is need for reforms in NYSC in order to enhance improved service delivery and also meet the challenges of the 21st century youths as potential entrepreneurs.


The Minister added that Government would continue to preserve the Scheme for its roles in national development and youth empowerment. 


Mr Dare, who commended the past Managers of the Scheme for introducing Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development programme into it’s Orientation Course programme which has produced hundreds of youth entrepreneurs also lauded the former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon and other stakeholders across the country for their support towards the actualization of the proposed NYSC Trust Fund.


He tasked the conference participants to “take the NYSC in the direction of another trajectory of progress, digital revolution, supporting and moulding the youths within one year to be better citizens for national development and national unity”.


In his welcome address, the Director General of National Youth Service Corps, Brigadier General YD Ahmed said since it’s inception in 1973, the NYSC has remained a reference point for other organisations owing to it’s vital roles in the promotion of national unity and integration, peaceful co-existence among Nigerians of diverse socio-cultural backgrounds and free movement of labour.


Ahmed disclosed that despite its laudable achievements, the Scheme is still battling some operational challenges such as; dilapidated facilities at the Orientation Camps, inadequate Corps Lodges, lack of befitting office accommodation in some states, inadequate operational vehicles among others.


He therefore appealed to critical stakeholders to discharge their statutory responsibilities to the Scheme and also empower a large number of Corps Members with start-up capital for self-reliance after going through the NYSC entrepreneurial trainings.


The DG stated further that the proposed NYSC Trust Fund, when actualized, would make the NYSC Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development programme more functional, through the provision of training facilities and start-up capital to finance the businesses of Corps Entrepreneurs.


The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Alhaji Muhammed Musa Bello commended the various innovations and positive strides made by the Scheme till date.


The Minister, whose address was read by the Mandate Secretary, Federal Capital Territory Administration, Hajia Hadiza Mohammed Kabir disclosed that Corps Members posted to the FCT have contributed immensely to the development of schools, hospitals, rural infrastructure, culture and tourism, sports, conduct of elections, population census, job creation among others.


“The Nation surely looks up to the Scheme to continue to provide the required manpower for its accelerated development”, he said.


In her goodwill address, the Chairman, NYSC National Governing Board, Ambassador Fatima Balla Abubakar represented by Alhaji Yusuf Nalado appealed for continued stakeholders’ support for NYSC.


The Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, Alhaji Ahmed Wada Ikaka said the conference participants would make useful contributions towards evolving new ideas and best practices that will form a road map that will improve the Scheme’s operations for greater impact.


Participants at the conference were drawn from the 37 NYSC State/FCT Secretariats, Area Offices and other formations of the Scheme across the country.

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Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

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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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