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Tax Reform: Gov Sule dismisses claims of rift with President Tinubu
The governor of Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Sule, has faulted the efforts to create a wedge between President Bola Tinubu and governors of the North over the controversial tax reform bills currently at the National Assembly, saying the governors who worked for his emergence have never and are not working against him.
Governor Sule made the disclosure on Friday while receiving a delegation from the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, who visited him at the Government House in Lafia. He explained that what the northern governors called for was the need for further consultation on the tax reform bill before the National Assembly, which encompasses the Value Added Tax.
He accused some vested interests of spreading false information with the intent to cause political tension through unfounded insinuations that the northern governors were opposed to the president.
According to Sule, people who were opposed to Tinubu’s presidency are now pretending to be his better supporters more than those who fought for his victory.
For some people making noise and saying the Northern governors are fighting the President, nobody is fighting the President. How could you fight a President who has made you look good? This is the truth. All we are saying is that some aspects of it, we need to look into it,” he said.
Sule thanked President Tinubu for enacting policies that have made governance and development easy in Nasarawa State without going into debt, saying he could not kick against a leader who has made meaningful contributions to the state’s progress.
The governor said there was a need for better understanding of some of the provisions in the tax reform bills. “We called for the withdrawal of the bills to review some aspects. They said it’s a wrong language, that amendments can be made without withdrawing the bills. I said that’s fine. I’m not looking for any trouble,” he explained.
On Value Added Tax, Governor Sule leaned on his private sector experience to impress upon its necessity for state finances.
He explained that Nasarawa State receives over N4 billion monthly from VAT, which has been very critical for its capital projects. He expressed apprehension over possible changes in the formula for sharing VAT due to the implication for states like Nasarawa, which rely so much on such revenue with their very meager IGR.
I know more about VAT than most of those arguing about it. Having been a chief executive, I know how it is generated and used. Today, it is the lifeblood of many states. Take away VAT from FAAC and you will see how we will all be struggling to fund projects, and I must speak for my people.”.
Governor Sule thanked the CAN Chairman, Very Reverend Dr. Sunday Emma, and his team for calling on the government to create more awareness on the tax reforms. He aligned himself with the call for comprehensive sensitization to be given to Nigerians on the proposed changes.
If they do proper sensitization and address the VAT issue, I will be fully supportive of the tax reforms. But it will be difficult without that, especially for states with low IGR,” he concluded.
Earlier, Dr. Emma had urged both federal and state governments to prioritize awareness campaigns about the tax reforms to foster greater public understanding and inclusion.
