By Tony Obiechina, Abuja
Nigeria stands at the threshold of a new, transparent, accountable and fair tax regime in which those who make more from the system pay a more equitable share of their income as tax towards the public good.
This was the position of tax experts on the second day of the Federal Inland Service FIRS Management Retreat in Abuja.
According to them, the move is targeted at lifting about 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in the next 10 years as envisioned by President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a statement by the FIRS Director of Communication, Abdullahi Ismaila, “this national imperative was outlined by paper presenters, discussants and the audience who rubbed minds over the 2019 Finance Act in a deeply stimulating debate”.
According to the statement, “Activities of the day commenced with a recap of Friday’s proceedings followed by comments and questions session during which all respondents, including FIRS officials, spoke with candor, forthrightness and straight from the heart to diagnose the challenges and proffer solutions towards the implementation of the 2019 Finance Act”.
In a Lead Paper titled “Strategies for Implementing the New VAT Regime”, by a renowned tax expert, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, and the panel discussion dissipated erroneous public apprehension that the new 7.5% VAT would impact negatively on poor Nigerians as it made clear that the well-to-do would now pay their fair share of taxes in the country unlike before.
Oyedele foregrounded the key to building this fair, equitable tax system in transparency, accountability, integrity, work and objectivity to build confidence in taxpayers and stakeholders in the tax sector.
Towards accomplishing this, the FIRS 2020 Corporate Plan was also unveiled at the session and subjected to a robust, on-the-spot debate, the statement added.
Presenting the new organizational structure of FIRS, the Executive Chairman, Mr. Muhammad Nami, disclosed that many posts in the organogram were vacant and open to the FIRS officials.
He charged them to distinguish themselves in the shortest possible time by meeting set collection targets in order to take up these available positions of higher responsibilities, stressing that the vacancies are strictly available on measurable merit and performance criteria only.
