The National Orientation Agency ( NOA ) has embarked on the sensitisation of the public on the importance and benefits of the tax reform bills proposed by President Bola Tinubu, which are awaiting passage by the National Assembly.
The director general of NOA, Mallam Issa Onilu, disclosed this yesterday at the flag-off of the nationwide sensitisation campaigns on World HIV/AIDS Day, security awareness, discouraging get rich quick syndrome, World Human Rights Day, and the tax reform bills, held in Maiduguri.
Mallam Onilu said the tax reform bills are four different bills that seek to bring everything about taxation and the administration of tax in Nigeria under four different pieces of legislation that includes the Nigeria Tax Bill; The Nigerian Tax Administration Bill; The Nigerian Revenue Service Establishment Bill and The Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill.
He said the tax reforms, when passed into law, will address double taxation experienced by taxpayers across the country. He added that people are complaining because they don’t know the benefits of the reform.
Onilu noted that several companies have closed down businesses and relocated out of the country due to double taxation, saying that the Bill will streamline methods of collecting taxes and that citizens will have the opportunity to hold government accountable in governance.
Represented by the director, Planning, Research and Strategy NOA , Mallam Noro Yusuf Kobi, the director general, said the agency will take the sensitisation to religious leaders through the mosques and the churches; radio stations, various media houses and communities.
Onilu said the campaign, which complements the efforts being made by relevant health authorities, coincides with World HIV/ AIDS Day. Hence NOA is joining the global community within the week across the 36 states, the FCT , and the 774 local governments in raising awareness.
He said that since security remains a top priority for the government, efforts to address it include strengthening security architecture through better equipment and increased funding for security agencies.
” Expanding policing initiatives to improve collaboration between citizens and law enforcement. Deploying technology, such as surveillance systems and intelligence gathering, to combat criminal activities,” the DG said.
He emphasised the agency’s massive campaign against the get-rich-quick syndrome bedevilling the country’s youth, saying that the government recognises that the erosion of age-long values and economic hardship often drive individuals towards unethical practices.
He said to address this, government implemented youth empowerment programmes such as the national social investment programme ( NSIP ) and skill acquisition initiatives, and supported small and medium enterprises through grants and loans to promote entrepreneurship.
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