Members of the Nigeria Governors ‘ Forum (NGF) converged at the forum’s secretariat in Abuja.
It was the first meeting of the forum for the 2025. Although the agenda of the meeting was not made public to journalists as of press time, the American Envoy to Nigeria, Richard Mills; and the Minister of Women Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim; were in attendance for the meeting with the State Chief Executives.
A handful of State Chief Executives including that of Kwara, Lagos, Abia, Ogun and a few deputy governors were likewise in attendance.
At their meeting in January, the State Chief Executives backed the Federal Government’s tax reform bills but proposed another sharing formula for value-added tax (VAT).
The State Chief Executives proposed a revised VAT-sharing formula, which they said ought to guarantee equitable distribution of assets.
As indicated by the NGF, the new sharing formula will be 50% based on uniformity, 30% based on derivation, and 20% based on the populace.
“Members agreed that there should be no increase in the VAT rate or reduction in Corporate Income Tax (CIT) at this time, to maintain economic stability,” the dispatch issued by the Chairman of the NGF and Chief Executive of Kwara State Abdul Rahman Abdul Razaq read.
“The Forum advocated for the continued exemption of essential goods and agricultural produce from VAT to safeguard the welfare of citizens and promote agricultural productivity.”
The NGF suggested that there should be no terminal clause for the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), and National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) in the sharing of development levies in the bills.
Regardless of the heated debates that the tax reform bills have generated, the State Chief Exectives say they support the “continuation of the legislative process at the National Assembly that will culminate in the eventual passage of the Tax Reform Bills”.
Last year, President Bola Tinubu sent four tax reform bills to the National Assembly, asking the lawmakers to consider and pass them.
The proposal includes the tax administration bill, Nigeria tax bill, and joint revenue board establishment bill.
Tinubu additionally needs to cancel the law establishing the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) which he is seeking to supplant with the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS).
But the move has been met with pushback from various sections of the nations, notably the northern State Chief Executives and a few leaders in that part of Nigeria.
They requested the National Assembly to neglect the bills, asserting that they were against the region. A few labelled them anti-north.
President Tinubu, in any case, vowed not to withdraw the bills, with the presidency guaranteeing that they are not against any section of the nation. It said, rather, they are to improve the lives of Nigerians.
