In a swift move to eliminate multiple taxation and regulations bearing negative effects on the Nigerian economy, the Nigerian Communications Commission hosted a stakeholders workshop on multiple taxation and regulations in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital to further birth a win win solution both for government and businesses.
The workshop which gathered key industry stakeholders and senior government officials from the South West Geo-political Zone bridges both both the intellectual and field practice gap in understanding the economic challenges occasioned by excessive taxation and regulation on telecom companies by states and their agencies.
the Executive Commissioner for Stakeholder Management at NCC, Mr. Adeleke Adewolu in his keynote speech on behalf of the Commission notes that Nigeria is widely known to be not only Africa’s most populous country but also the largest economy on the Continent and it is expected that strong economic growth in Nigeria would generate substantial prospects for growth and spillovers for the whole West African region.
Adds that despite the prospect of accelerated economic growth, the presence of multiple taxation, which the World Bank has termed ‘nuisance taxes’ has and continues to prove to be a bane on economic development in the Country.
However,Mr. Adeleke before addressing how multiple taxation is an impediment to economic development, emphasizes that taxation, in and of itself, is a veritable tool for economic development.
He stresses that the curious question, the workshop attempt to answer, is how a fiscal tool for economic development like taxation can become inimical to economic development. It is imperative therefore to correct some misconception about taxation, particularly the misguided notion of taxation as a penal tool on thriving business enterprise.
Taxation is the backbone for public finance. It provides guaranteed and sustainable sources of funding for social programs and public investments, it also serves as a tool curated by the government to effectively and efficiently distribute our commonwealth. It is thus evident that taxation is critical for making growth sustainable and equitable. Thus, taxation by design is an instrument for economic development and it is important to acknowledge and support the initiative of all tiers of Government in using taxation as an instrument for socio-economic development.
However, supporting the tax initiatives by the various tiers of Government includes indicating where a category of taxes have become cancerous to economic development. These type of taxes typically manifest themselves in the form of multiple taxation and by design, they reverse growth, stifle innovation and discourage investment. In parabolic terms, they are the scarecrows mounted by government to disincentivize development.
Mr. Adeleke brought to the fore the National Tax Policy 2017 which emphasizes the need to eradicate multiple taxation at all tiers of government which specifically states that taxes similar to those being collected by a level of Government should not be introduced by the same or another level of Government.
He thereby enjoins the Federal, State and Local Governments to ensure collaboration in harmonizing and eliminating multiple taxation.
He also commends the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to addressing the vexed issue of multiple taxation, recently signed a number of Executive Orders to curb arbitrary taxes in the Country. Says, the inauguration of the Committee on Fiscal Policy, Tax Reforms by the President, which is geared towards harmonizing taxes will provide an avenue to further engage various stakeholders in order to identify their pain points and critical concerns bothering tax and fiscal policies. This would also facilitate a conducive environment conducive for local and foreign investment into the country.
The Policy direction of the Federal Government is that all tiers of government are expected to align, as closely as possible, to the fundamental principles of taxation.
Mr Adeleke Adewolu however expresses optimistic that the workshop will sufficiently clarify common mischief on taxation. That after fruitful deliberations, there will be a renewed zeal towards eradicating multiple taxes and more devotion to creating business friendly environment for the economy thrive.
Ultimately, this Workshop is an invitation to both the public and private sector to view taxation as a win-win solution in steering the course of our national economy, he said.