A former Chairman of the Northern Governors’ Forum, Babangida Aliyu, has criticized Nigerians who are speaking out against the tax reform bills without taking the time to study them.
He spoke on Saturday at the graduation ceremony at the National Institute for Security Studies, Abuja, for the Executive Intelligence Management Course 17.
Aliyu, who is also a former Governor of Niger State, expressed his disappointment at the Federal Government’s failure to effectively communicate the content of the bills to Nigerians.
The tax reform 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 been met with widespread debate since their introduction to the National Assembly.
The bills have been rejected by the Governors of the 19 northern states, who are opposed to the new derivation-based model for Value Added Tax distribution outlined in the bills.
According to Aliyu, many Nigerians debating the tax bills have not read them, and the government should do more to communicate the content of the bills to the public.
He said, “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 bills have not read them.
“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 a policy that will bring changes, so, that the people can understand.”
“You cannot say because of one person, the policy cannot be taken. So communication is very, very important,” he added.
