
By Nathaniel Zacchaeus, Abuja
The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, and the Minority Leader of the Senate, Abba Moro, yesterday expressed strong optimism that the public hearing on the Tax Reform Bills will soon be held and presented for the passage of the third reading.
Moro is the Chairman of the ad-hoc committee set up by the Senate in December last year to carry out the required interface with the federal government on grey areas in some of the proposed tax reform’s provisions.
He spoke with journalists after an over two-hour closed-door session his committee had with the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), and the ChairmanChairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr Zacch Adedeji.
Others at the meeting were the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, and the Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), Dr Mohammed Shehu. Shehu said some agreements have been reached.
“We just had a meeting and interfaced with the officials of government, the Attorney General of the Federation, the Chairman of RMAFC, and the FIRS Chairman. We are in the process of evaluating the contending tendencies regarding the tax bills.
“We have agreed that we must synthesize the whole process to ensure that at the end of the day, we give Nigerians what Nigerians want, and that is a law that serves the purpose of all Nigerians.
“So, that is where we are now, and hopefully, by the time we meet again, we will finalize and have a better story to tell you.”
Earlier, while fielding questions from journalists, the FIRS boss said the perceived grey areas have been cleared, and based on positive dispositions shown by committee members to the bills, they will surely pass them into law very soon.
He said, “All those things you call grey areas were discussed and identified, and then, as you said, it’s advisory, so the judgment is not to be made. Based on your observation, we should continue the engagement and the consultation, which has been positive.
“So we are in the right direction, and everything is going as planned. There won’t be any other meetings because all issues were identified, all the problems were clarified, and resolutions were made.
“To the best of my knowledge, everybody there agreed that Nigeria needs the laws as proposed. So, what has happened today is that you see the framework of the law, the attorney general, the lawmakers, and all of us, the operators, and everything went well.”
The Nigeria Tax Administration Bill (NTAB) 2024, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill (NRSEB) 2024, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill (JRBEB) 2024, were passed for second reading in the Senate on November 28, 2024.