BY EDMOND ODOK – In a move aimed at dousing public tension over the contentious Tax reform bills, the Senate has constituted a Special Committee to liaise with the Executive arm and relevant stakeholders to address all the grey areas and report back to the Committee of the whole before the planned public hearing on the bills.
Announcing the decision during plenary on Wednesday, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North), said the Committee would be headed by the Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro (PDP) representing Benue South Senatorial district
Senator Barau, who presided over the session, said given the controversies trailing the bills, the Committee is saddled with the responsibility of consulting with the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), the executive arm, and other critical stakeholders on the best way forward.
Barau said the Committee and the Federal Government team will meet on Thursday at the National Assembly to resolve all the issues that have been causing the uproar, saying; “We don’t want the country disunited. So, the delegations will meet to resolve the gray areas.”
The committee members include all the Senate leadership, including other members like Tahir Mongunu, Adamu Aliero, Seriake Dickson, Adeola Solomon, Tokunbo Abiru, Senators Titus Zam (APC, Benue North West), Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia North), Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), and Abdullahi Yahaha (Kebbi North) among others.
This Senate resolution comes on the heels of the interview granted by Senator Shehu Buba to the British Broadcasting Service (BBC), Hausa Service where he indicated that Northern senators have agreed to recall the Tax Reforms Bills.
Also, reports had emerged that President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday directed the Ministry of Justice to meet with lawmakers to address concerns raised by certain interests. On October 3, 2024, the President transmitted to the National Assembly, four tax reform bills, in a letter, read by the Senate President Godswill Akpabio, and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Tajuddeen Abbas, during both chambers’ separate plenaries.
Despite assurances from the Presidency that the bills would bolster Nigeria’s fiscal institutions as they were in line with the government’s broader development objectives for the country, many Nigerians, including governors, traditional rulers, civil society organisations, some federal lawmakers, and other stakeholders have continued to express their discomfort about the bills.
