Speakers at the 8th Wole Soyinka Centre Media Lecture Series have charged
the Nigerian Government on the need to ensure an inclusive, simplified and
automated tax regime in the country. The lead speaker, Adebimpe Balogun,
who was the first female president of the Chartered Institute of Taxation
of Nigeria (CITN), stated that the problem of taxation in Nigeria is with
the administration of the system. An example according to her is with the
difficulty to get tax refund in the cases of tax credit in the country.
The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Babatunde Fowler represented by Wahab Gbadamosi, Head Communication and SERVICOM
department, in his remark, admonsied newsmen on the need to be better
informed on tax issues and leverage on data available to educate their
audience. He said the agency is putting everything in place to ensure
people pay their taxes effectively.
A discussant at the lecture Edobong Akpabio, Vice President of NECA’s
Network of Entrepreneurial Women (NNEW), stated that 97% of businesses in
Nigeria are from the Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs).
She said due to varying challenges, one of which is taxation, many SMEs in Nigeria die before their fifth birthday. Akpabio stated that the lack of communication and proper customer service orientation exhibited by tax officials at agency outlets was another challenge and stressed that, “tax offices should be conducive for tax payers and free of miscreants”.
Emuesiri Agbeyi, a tax partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, during the
discussion, added that Nigeria’s tax system is one of the most difficult globally, quoting statistics from the World Bank Doing Business Report.
To resolve the challenge, she suggested that the tax system should be made simple and easy for comprehension. She added that issues of tax credit and tax reforms should be made very clear as this would encourage tax compliance. Emuesiri, also emphasised the need to simplify the language used in tax laws to understandable English as most of the laws were written in the 1960s.
A civil society representative, Abubakar Jimoh, who is the Communication,
Information and Public Officer of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), added that tax authorities need to have effective response to tax payers to get more revenue.
CEO/Founder of The Cable Newspaper, Simon Kolawole, stated that the country
had been distracted up until now by revenue from oil. According to him, the
media’s role in taxation is to educate government and the society. He added
that taxation is a tool of relationship, thus it is the prosperity of businesses that can build compliance.
While opening the event, the Board Chair of the Wole Soyinka Centre for
Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), Ropo Sekoni, enjoined all participants to Play their role in ensuring there is a successful tax regime in the country. He said as much as government has their role, citizens have responsibilities too. Sekoni added that the media also has the duty of ensuring the discussion on tax is left on the front burner to ensure the
needed effect in the society.