Featured
Rural Women Grant Flags Off In South East

Joel Ajayi
The Federal Government’s cash Grant for Rural Women has commenced in the South East.
This follows the launch of the program in Ebonyi state on Thursday by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development Sadiya Umar Farouq at the Old Government House, Abakaliki.
The Minister advised the women to make judicious use of the one-off N20,000 cash Grant by starting up petty businesses or adding the seed money to already established small businesses.
She noted that the program which was established by the President Mohammadu Buhari-led administration is aimed at lifting 100m Nigerians out of poverty in the next ten years.
“Our message to them is for them to utilize this money judiciously by starting up small businesses so that by God’s grace, this money will multiply and they will be able to take care of themselves and their families.
“We expect the Ebonyi state government to assist these women with advice, support, and expertise and follow up on them in order to guide them with the business they decide to embark upon”.
In his response, the Governor of Ebonyi state Engr David Umahi praised President Muhammadu Buhari for the initiative which he said will go a long way in assuaging the sufferings of rural women in the state.
Governor Umahi who was represented by the Deputy Governor Eric Kelechi Igwe described the visit of the minister as timely, promising that the women will turn over the seed money given to them very soon.
“This is an auspicious day because it also marks the day that Ebonyi people moved from the leftist side to the right. No government has ever done this for the people of Ebonyi. I thank President Muhammadu Buhari and Minister Sadiya Umar Farouq for churning out these Development policies.
“Women are very hard working. If men were the ones who got this money, they would have taken wives the next morning. Women don’t dictate to their husbands but they determine that food is in the house. For this gesture, we are appreciative and we will continue to ask for more”.
The Deputy Governor also appealed to the minister to fashion out ways of appraising the program to assess their performance in the business or whatsoever they have chosen to do with the seed money.
It is expected that over 200 women from the 13 local government councils of Ebonyi state will benefit from the Federal government’s Cash Grant for Rural Women.
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.
-
Featured6 years ago
Lampard Names New Chelsea Manager
-
Featured5 years ago
FG To Extends Lockdown In FCT, Lagos Ogun states For 7days
-
Featured6 years ago
NYSC Dismisses Report Of DG’s Plan To Islamize Benue Orientation Camp
-
Featured5 years ago
Children Custody: Court Adjourns Mike Ezuruonye, Wife’s Case To April 7
-
Featured3 years ago
Transfer Saga: How Mikel Obi Refused to compensate me After I Linked Him Worth $4m Deal In Kuwait SC – Okafor
-
Sports2 years ago
TINUBU LAMBAST DELE MOMODU
-
News3 months ago
Zulu to Super Eagles B team, President Tinubu is happy with you
-
Featured5 years ago
Board urges FG to establish one-stop rehabilitation centres in 6 geopolitical zones