Nigeria: Senate Panel Wants Govt to Stop Tax Waivers to Corporate Organisations

6 December 2023
Premium Times (Abuja)
By Abdulqudus Ogundapo

The Senate Committee on Appropriation said the country is losing huge revenue to tax waivers and incentives.

The Senate Committee on Appropriations has asked the federal government to stop tax waivers granted to some corporate organisations by the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.

Chairman of the committee, Adeola Olamilekan, said this on Wednesday during an interactive session on the 2024 Appropriation Bill, with the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, and his counterpart in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu.

Mr Olamilekan, the senator representing Ogun West on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said the country is losing huge revenue to tax waivers and incentives.

The senator advised the federal government to consider a rebate system as an alternative to tax waiver.

"We (committee) have also agreed on the issue of waivers that, firstly all monies should be paid to the coffers of the government and then people can now apply for rebates," Mr Olamilekan said.

Responding to the committee's suggestion, Mr Edun said the fiscal policy and tax reform committee inaugurated by the federal government will look into the issue of tax waiver.

He also said the government will decide whether to consider a rebate system as an alternative to tax waiver.

"That has to be looked at, and the devil is in the details. But I think we are all agreeing that we should try as much as possible to move to a rebate system rather than up-front granting of waivers and other incentives even including interest incentives.

"So, if somebody is going to be given a concessional interest rate, they pay the normal interest, carry out the transaction, and then they get a rebate.

"The fiscal policy and tax reform committee is very careful about that and what you have advised today will be taken as important input into our work" the minister said.

Contribution

Also, speaking, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Sani Musa, supported the call to stop tax waivers.

Mr Musa, the Senator representing Niger East under the platform of APC, also urged the government to adopt a rebate system as advised by the appropriation committee.

Chief Whip of the Senate, Ali Ndume, also urged the government to stop the tax waiver policy.

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