Revisit NEC Resolutions On Tax Reform Bills, Atiku Tells NASS

Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has asked the National Assembly to revisit and make public the resolutions of the National Economic Council (NEC) on the Tax Reform Bills.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election said the National Assembly must be guided appropriately to ensure that in the final analysis, the contents of the Bills align with the interests of most Nigerians.

The bills which have generated controversies since it was sent to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu, passed for second reading at the Senate last week.

The House of Representatives is expected to debate the bill this week. Recall that the North leaders, including the governors and traditional rulers have kicked against the bills, saying the proposed tax law will cause more harm than good to their region.

Reacting yesterday however, Atiku said, “I call on the NASS to revisit and make public the resolutions of the National Economic Council, a key stakeholder and an important organ of the state with the constitutional power to advise the President concerning the economic affairs of the Federation. The NASS must be appropriately guided and ensure that in the final analysis, the contents of the Bills align with the interests of the vast majority of Nigerians,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Atiku, who said he followed the intense public discourse on the Tax Reform Bills with keen interest, stressed that Nigerians are united in their call for a fiscal system that promotes justice, fairness, and equity.

He said Nigerians are “loud and clear that the fiscal system we seek to promote must not exacerbate the uneven development of the federating units by enhancing the status of a few states while unduly penalising others.”

He also called on the House of Representatives to be objective and transparent in the conduct of its public hearing on the Tax Reform Bills.

“I call for objectivity and transparency in the conduct of the public hearing being organised by our representatives in the National Assembly. As a concerned stakeholder, I firmly believe that transparency and objectivity are essential for promoting accountability, good governance, and public trust in policy-making.

“The public hearing process must facilitate open and inclusive participation by all stakeholders, including Civil Society Organizations, traditional institutions, politicians, public officials, and subject matter experts.”

Recall that the National Economic Council (NEC) had advised President Tinubu to withdraw the bills after controversies that followed its introduction.

The bill was forwarded to NASS based on the report and recommendations of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal and Tax Reforms set up by the President to help boost revenue generation in the country.

However, NEC unanimously called for the withdrawal of the bill. They cited need for sufficient alignment between and amongst the stakeholders for the proposed reforms.

But President Tinubu said the document would not be withdrawn from the National Assembly. He rather explained that the bills should go through the legislative process.