FG Urged to Allow Further Public Engagement on Tax Reform Bills

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin 

Immediate past Speaker  of Kwara State House of Assembly, Prof..Ali Ahmad has again urged the federal government to allow further public engagement in the passage of the tax reform bills. 

Ali spoke in Ilorin at the 2nd edition of the seminar organised by  Sobi FM Chapel  of the Kwara State Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

The was tagged,  “The Role of Media in Promoting Transparency and Accountability in Tax Reformation Legislation.”

He said the further public engagement of the people on the bills would assist the various stakeholders in the country to offer ideas and opinions capable of giving the tax reform bills a wider acceptability.

Ahmad , a constitutional lawyer opined that, “since we are in democracy, people should be allowed to make contributions that would go a long way of enhancing the nation’s democracy since democracy is about people”.

Prof Ahmad who faulted the present hardline posture of the federal government on the bills said that, “if the people are involved on the tax reform bills, it will also  go a long way of  ensuring transparent and accountability in the tax administration of the country”.

He pointed out that, “the current move to just sent the tax reform bills proposal to the National Assembly without taking the people’s into consideration would not augur well for the people of the country”.

He stated, “The members of the National Assembly  should open up to give the people of the country the contents of the bills and allow the people to contribute their own ideas and opinions on the bills.

“This will go a long way for the members of the National Assembly to collate the views of the people and help the people to know the bills they wanted to introduce to the people of the country. The public hearing  needs to be organised on this kind of reforms because it is one of the  necessary tools of the democracy.”

Ahmad added, “A transparent tax system ensures that citizens understarnd how taxes are collected, managed, and utilized. Accountability guarantees that public officials, institutions, and agencies are held responsible for their actions or inactions in

tax administration. Therefore, in the context of tax laws where you have divergence of interest between the government and the citizens, the role of the media becomes particularly heightened especially because of the limited time-frame available for dissecting the tax bills.

“This is where the element of trust has been identified by many speakers as critical. Per  these analysts, citizens’ public trust regarding management of public finances, including revenues from taxation, is very low.  The media is under obligation to hold government accountable on the management of existing tax revenues. 

“The Government has inundated taxpayers with figures alluding to the fact that its income consistently exceeds budgetary projections, yet taxpayers complain about lack of evidence in efficiently utilisation of tax proceeds for the benefit of the people. Transparency and accountability are not mere buzzwords; they are the bedrock of sustainable governance. 

He however urged the media to brace up towards changing the present narratives so as to educate the people of the country on the effective and sustainable tax reforms so as to move the nation forward.