- Says quitting as Finance Minister was to protect the office
- Backs Tax reforms, subsidy removal
BY COBHAM NSA – A former Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun has applauded the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration for demonstrating the political will to confront the multifaceted security challenges facing the country.
She said though insecurity remains complex and longstanding, government’s holistic approach that combines military action with socio-economic and governance reforms is quite commendable.
Adeosun, who offered her thoughts in an interview on Channels Television’s Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, also addressed issues of poverty, citizen-led development, tax reforms, fuel subsidy removal, and the ongoing efforts of the Bola Tinubu administration to reform governance and public finance.
She expressed cautious optimism in the success of current efforts, saying, “Insecurity didn’t start overnight, and it won’t end overnight”, adding: “But what matters is that there is now a clear will to tackle it.”
The former Minister stressed that the fundamental strategies should involve deepening international cooperation, addressing root causes like poverty and inequality, and reforming the security sector for effective service delivery.
Recounting a personal experience during her time in office as the Finance Minister when her home was invaded and she was robbed at knifepoint, Mrs Adeosun said: “It was extremely scary and I never slept in that house again.”
While reiterating her support for fuel subsidy removal while in office as Minister of Finance, Adeosun described the development as inevitable, saying: “There was no Minister who did not know that subsidy was killing us.”
She explained that Nigeria’s subsidised fuel prices, combined with porous land borders, have continued to encourage massive smuggling
Querying official figures flaunted back then, the former Minister said: “We had consumption figures of about 65 million litres per day with only about 10 million cars. It was not possible.”
For her, subsidy removal frees up funds for development, noting that “Money spent on subsidy is money you can’t spend on roads, education or health.”
However, urging that governments must address the negative spillovers of such policies, she said, “You need structural solutions, not just palliatives, to help people absorb policy changes.”
Also throwing her weight behind ongoing tax reforms, Adeosun said tax compliance had historically been weak, particularly among wealthy individuals and large corporations, even as she referenced initiatives such as the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS), which targeted tax evasion.
According to her: “When you’re Minister of Finance, the word ‘no’ becomes your watchword. If your Finance Minister is loved by everybody, they’re probably not doing much of a job.”
Adeosun, who also commended the current administration for pushing data harmonisation across government agencies, described the arrangement as critical to improving tax collection and governance.
Hear her: “I was excited when I saw moves to harmonise data. We’ve had TIN, NIN, BVN, too many numbers. Once you harmonise data, it becomes very difficult to hide.”
Explaining that access to integrated data allows government to identify individuals and companies benefiting from public resources without paying taxes, the Ogun State-born technocrat said, “Once you have data, and with AI, you can see very quickly who is not playing the game fairly.”
On her decision to leave the cabinet of President Muhammadu Buhari in September 2018, Adeosun said it was meant to protect the Office of the Minister of Finance.
Responding to the issue of her exemption from the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), she said resignation was deliberate to protect the Office, and allow her to clear her reputation legally.
“People kept asking why did I resign? That no one resigns as minister of finance like I did? I still think it was the right thing for me to do. My resignation is a matter of principle and not an admission of wrongdoing.
“It was a step to protect the Office of the Minister of Finance and defend my reputation. I can’t be attending local and international meetings as minister of finance, and also appearing in a court in a case of integrity and reputation.”
She said remaining in office while pursuing a lawsuit against the government would have been an inappropriate behavior as a public officer.
