According to a news report by Punch, Babangida Aliyu, a former governor of Niger State and ex-chairman of the Northern Governors Forum, has criticized those opposing the recently introduced tax reform bills, claiming they have failed to thoroughly review the proposals. The bills, which include the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024, and the Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024, have ignited widespread debate since their introduction to the National Assembly.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony for the Executive Intelligence Management Course 17 at the National Institute for Security Studies in Abuja on Saturday, Aliyu argued that critics of the bills have not taken the time to study their provisions in detail. The bills aim to restructure Nigeria’s tax system, but have faced resistance, especially from the governors of the 19 northern states, who rejected the derivation-based model for Value Added Tax (VAT) distribution proposed in the bills during a meeting on October 28. Shortly afterward, the National Economic Council called for the withdrawal of the bills, urging the government to hold more consultations before proceeding.
Aliyu further pointed out that poor communication from the government has contributed to public misunderstanding of the policy. “I was speaking to the NSA when we were in the common room, and I said to him, look, many of the people debating the tax bill have not read it. But again, there is the problem of communication; the government should speak more when the majority of the people are not literate. You should be the first to speak on any major policy, particularly one that will bring changes so that people can understand it,” he said.
He emphasized that while policies may not benefit everyone equally, they should not be dismissed due to a single dissenting voice. “People can know that there is no policy that will come to somebody; if the majority comes and one person is disturbed, you can only tell him. But you cannot say because of one person, the policy cannot be taken. So communication is very, very important,” Aliyu added.