National Assembly doesn’t need to review Tinubu’s Tax Reform bills before rejecting them – Senator – Crime Channels

National Assembly doesn’t need to review Tinubu’s Tax Reform bills before rejecting them – Senator

Senator Ali Ndume of Borno South has argued that the National Assembly does not need to analyse President Bola Tinubu’s tax reform bills before countering them.

Ndume’s comments come after Tinubu submitted four key tax-related bills to the legislature in October, including the Nigeria Tax Bill, the Tax Administration Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill.

While the Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF) has voiced opposition to the proposed reforms, and the National Economic Council (NEC) advised the President to withdraw the bills for more consultation, Tinubu has remained firm, insisting that the bills will not be withdrawn and that the National Assembly is free to make amendments as they see fit.

Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television program, Ndume admitted that he had not yet studied the tax reform proposals. However, he expressed skepticism about their timing, given the current economic challenges facing the country, and suggested that the bills may not be suitable for the present moment.

He said: “I can tell you that it will be dead on arrival. We don’t need to study the bill.

“The general thing is that Nigerians are not willing to talk, hear or pay any tax now considering the situation we have faced because this is the government of the people.

“Right now, people can’t even afford what to eat. People are struggling to survive.

“Let people live first before you start asking them for tax.”