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SYSTEMATIC TRANSFORMATION OF ENUGU INTO A PEACEFUL CITY BY GOVERNOR IFEANYI UGWUANYI

Published

4 years ago

September 19, 2020

By Ifeanyi Ogenyi Esq.

Peace has always been among humanity’s highest values because the most “disadvantageous” peace is better than the most “just” crisis or violence.

Peace is a product of a positive mental attitude. It is the desire of every beating heart, the hope of every nation, and the promise of every politician.

Crisis, conflicts, and violence shatter lives and stunt development; and their effects are far-reaching as they pass to generation. Those who have ever witnessed political intimidation, harassment, restlessness, crisis, and violence in the State in time past can tell you the gory story. Living in fear, tumult, and hostile environment is neither attractive nor palatable.

It is therefore pertinent to take stock of the gains recorded under this administration and not the pains of the yesteryears. We have to put our eyes and minds on the glorious and brighter paths of peace we tread upon today in Enugu.

It is a notable fact that Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi assumed office at a time when peace was practically eluding the State. He emerged at a time when hatred, violence, politics of bitterness, and crisis have gained notoriety in Enugu and hope was fading. The city was facing overwhelming restlessness.

The meek mien and unassuming dispositions of His Excellency Rt.Hon.Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi left no one in doubt as to his capacity and ability to enthrone peace in all ramifications in the State.

Expectedly, Gov.Ugwuanyi within five years in the office has made Enugu the peace-hub of the South and center of attraction; and the most peaceful State in Nigeria. He has worked his promise to assiduously enthrone peace and security in the State.

When peaceful conditions prevail in a society, all activities take place in their proper form. But if the atmosphere of peace is disturbed, the normal functioning of the State is disrupted.

It is always good for a man who knows the terrain to lead. Gov. Ugwuanyi was conversant with the socio-economic, political cum religious problems confronting the State.

Gov.Ugwuanyi is a rare and divine gift to humanity.

His inclusive governance and pragmatic leadership style premised on simplicity, mutual respect, humility, transparency, and bipartisanship have crystallized into peace and has also made Enugu the most peaceful State in Nigeria. He has legendarily demonstrated that it is possible to transform conflicts into cooperation.

Notably, a critical factor for peace-building and sustenance is the realization of good governance, while promoting justice through transparency, accountability, rule of law, and strengthening the tenets of democracy in the State.

He has the firm understanding that peace is a costly ornament and the most needed agent for human development as it enhances good governance and promotes rapid development because it is only in a peaceful environment that we can make the desired progress.

The Governor has not been seen engaging in any act capable of undermining the relationship between his administration and the past ones. As a leader with a conscience, he has the understanding that the new guard fighting the old guards in the State is despicable.

HE Rt.Hon.Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has laid to rest, the politics of bitterness and other variables that bring disharmony in the State by re-integrating everyone into the system irrespective of political affiliation or difference. He has repositioned the State on the path of an enduring peace where everyone explores his potential for the overall development of the State.

He has also strived to creatively and resiliently bring about a balance of power and the associated agreement which in turn have engendered definite equilibrium among the divergent interests and groups in the State; and the agreement is a simultaneous solution to the different equations of power where there is harmony based on expectations.

The enduring peace in Enugu for me, is the most important of all, the most remarkable of all the achievements of Gov. Ugwuanyi in Enugu State.

Why is so much emphasis on peace and why is it an achievement? Without it, the destructive tendencies of man will continue to inch us closer to destruction and catastrophe. It is really something to rejoice and pride about and be more knitted together than violence.

Gov. Ugwuanyi has re-defined leadership through his peace-making initiative and governance has been given a better direction by demonstrating that the State can function effectively without armies and thugs, that love is better than hatred and peace is better than violence.

He has ensured peace in the State and calmness has returned to the Coal City. He laid to rest thuggery and youth restiveness in the State’s political landscape by accommodating all divergent interests and also by engaging our teeming youths into lawful and meaningful activities thereby seamlessly given them re-orientation for their lives.

Gov. Ugwuanyi has created a new Enugu of “Non-violent City” where peace and love lead. One can today beat his chest and assert that peace has come to stay in Enugu without fear or favor.

It is therefore irrational and parochial for some persons attempting to disrupt the existing peace by trying to truncate the long-standing zoning arrangement in Enugu among the three Senatorial Zones.

Zoning arrangement has not only brought political stability and peace to the State but also has ensured that justice, fairness, and equity prevail at all times in the State. Zoning has come to stay in Enugu just as the peace it has engendered has also come to stay “gidi gabam”.

Undisputedly, Gov. Ugwuanyi is a peace-lover and builder; and a product of zoning arrangement. And as such, with the overwhelming support of Ndi Enugu which he enjoys, he will not be muscled or coerced into the political gimmick of truncating the zoning arrangement in Enugu which is also a veritable instrument for the sustenance of the enduring peace in the State.

Enugu people are confident that Gov.Ugwuanyi will not engage in any act capable of disrupting the enduring peace he has laboured to restore in Enugu now and come 2023.

Let peace continue to reign and prevail in Enugu.

Shalom!

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Business

Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

Published

1 week ago

March 6, 2025

The Gleamer

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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