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Oyo Speaker, Technocrats Seek Mentorship For Youths For National Growth

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…As Kwara schools won 1m at Voices of Tomorrow summit

…Shagaya explains motive for initiative

James Samuel Ilorin

Nigerian youths have called on leaders in the public and private sectors to prioritise mentorship for the younger generation in whatever capacity they find themselves, saying it is the antidote to keep them focused and fast track Nigeria’s development.

The charge was given at the inaugural Voices of Leadership (VOT) organised by Technical Assistant on Investments to the Kwara State Governor, Kabir Shagaya, in commemoration of his 34th birthday.

The event, which held over the weekend at Banquet Hall, Ilorin was attended by influential personalities from both public and private sectors who sat on the panel to discuss the theme, “Responsibilities and Expectations That Come With Influence”.

The programme had three different panel sessions with a blend of top government officials and successful entrepreneurs bearing their mind on arrays of issues bordering on human management, responsibilities, and challenges in the world of work.

Young technocrats on the panels included Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Debo Ogundoyin; MD/CEO, Rural Electrification Agency, Engr. Ahmed Salihijo; Commissioner for Finance Cross Rivers State, Mr Asuquo Ekpenyong; Principal Private Secretary to Kwara State Governor, Mrs Jumoke Gafar; Director New Growth Areas LIRS Lagos State, Mr Jimi Aina; Technical Assistant to Minister of State Petroleum, Mr Teme Banigo; Executive Assistant to the Governor of Edo State, and Mr Tijani Nwadei.

Others are Commissioner for Tertiary Education in Kwara State Barr. Senior Sulyman; General Manager of KWASSIP Mohammed Brimah; Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Primary Healthcare Development Agency Dr. Mrs Nusirat Elelu; Chief Press Secretary to the Governor Rafiu Ajakaye; SSA to the Governor on SDGs Mrs Jemila Bio; SSA youths engagement Mrs Kaosarah Adeyi; TA on Agric Mr Abdulqawiy Olododo; TA on Geographical Information Systems, AbdulMutallab Shittu; and MD/ CEO Ilorin Innovation Centre Mr Temi Kolawole.

Successful young entrepreneurs including Prince Aderemi Sijuwaje; Dr Tola Awosika; Mr Waru Obaseki; Mr Segun Adebayo; Alh. Hakeem Shagaya; Prince Bukunmi Olateru– Olagbegi; and Mr Lakunle Runsewe were also among the panelists at the summit.

VOT Summit assembled elder statesmen, royal fathers, youth and women groups, students across tertiary institutions of the state for a well-poised conversation on growth.

Speaking at VOT, Kabir said the initiative was birthed to provide a platform for influential young leaders to weigh in on worsening youth crisis, unemployment, lack of direction, saying he believed that it is the right place for youths to be inspired by visionary young leaders participating in discourse that broadens their possibilities, the vision to live a life of impact.

Panelists at the event agreed that youths are an important stakeholder deserving a platform to grow, commending Kabir Shagaya for the summit he organised which they described as brilliant and timely.

Prince Aderemi Sijuwade called on youths to be prayerful and diligent in whatever capacities they serve.

Speaking during a panel session, Engr Ahmed Salihijo also noted that managing relationship is vital to effective leadership, charging young people to be united and accessible in power.

Oyo Speaker particularly said that Shagaya had inspired him to replicate the summit in Oyo State. He said such an initiative putting students and top leaders under the same roof for mentorship is commendable.

Meanwhile, the programme also featured a debate session between tertiary institutions in Kwara State, with the Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin emerging winner with a cash prize of N500,000.

The University of Ilorin, Ilorin took the first runner up position and went away with the sum of N250,000, while the Kwara State University, Malete came third and was rewarded with N150,000, and College of Education (COED), Ilorin went away with N100,000.

Kabir assured that the summit will hold next year, promising to continue interfacing with the students for the good of the nation

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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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