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Just in: Tinubu Govt To Tax Yahoo Boys Under New Tax Bill
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Chairman, Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele has said that illicit funds in Nigeria such as laundered money or proceeds of crimes will also be taxed under the controversial tax reform bill.
Oyedele made the assertion when speaking on an X space hosted by Nairametrics in partnership with Business Day, BudgIT, and CODE
He explained that the government will rely on data and intelligence reports to track illicit funds of Nigerians and tax them before probing the sources of such funds.
He said such tax will be collected through what he tagged a “voluntary disclosure programme”, in which people will declare the source of their funds whether legal or illegal.
“Yes, we have provisions (for illicit funds) in those bills. You have to pay tax regardless of the source of the income, and once we find that you have revenue, including from the international data we’re going to be receiving, and you can’t explain it, you have to pay the tax.
“But for people to be able to do that almost seamlessly, we plan to do a voluntary disclosure programme, where we give the people the opportunity to self-declare before we now come down on them because this time around there is going to be data and everybody will know it is not a joke,” he clarified.
Govt will discover revenue through intelligence
Oyedele further explained that the government will find out the revenue of citizens whether a citizen discloses or not.
“We are going to write you and tell you, “This is how much you have in your account”, the number of bank accounts that you have; how much money you spend on your payment card; the money you have with investment accounts and asset management, stock accounts, how many times you have travelled abroad.
“I don’t want to scare anybody but these are pieces of cake that they have been doing in small, large, developed, underdeveloped countries for years. So we are not even doing anything that is novel, we are just trying to be at par with the rest of the world.”
It will help fight corruption
Oyedele also noted that expanding the tax net to the underworld of crimes will help Nigeria fight corruption.
He said: “We think this will also help us to fight corruption because if we want to do this seriously, this is how to tackle corruption.
“Because I find money that you can’t explain, then I collect the tax fast, then I come back to say “by the way, where did you get the money from?”
He added that the bill makes provision for an Ombudsman to ensure that taxpayers are not cheated and overtaxed. He said the Ombudsman would be legally empowered to function
“The Ombudsman can also bite. And it is not just about protecting the vulnerable person, you come in and just vent. The Ombudsman has the means and resources to intervene immediately. And there are consequences for the revenue authority if they don’t listen to you, including legally.”
What you should know
The tax bill provides relief for low-income earners and small businesses as they would be exempt from income taxes and value-added taxes.
However, it is facing strong resistance from the Northern part of the country, where political stakeholders say it would not benefit the region.
Virtually all governors in the Northern region have opposed the bill.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
An explosion suspected to be a bomb has rocked an Islamiyyah school in the Kuchibiyu Community of Bwari Area Council, Abuja, killing one student and injuring four others.
A report by Premium Times said the incident occurred around noon on Monday, January 6, 2025.
The deafening explosion reportedly sent shockwaves through the quiet community located approximately 42 kilometres from Abuja’s city centre.
Emergency response teams, including the police bomb disposal squad, promptly arrived at the scene, while the injured were rushed to a nearby hospital for urgent medical care.
The report quoted a security source to have disclosed that the deceased student, whose identity had yet to be confirmed as of press time, was reportedly carrying a substance suspected to be an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) when it detonated.
The explosion caused injuries to other students and widespread panic in and around the school premises.
Authorities at the school were unavailable for comment, and the Federal Capital Territory Police Command had yet to issue an official statement as of press time.
Repeated calls to the FCT Police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, did not connect.
The affected students were said to have resumed school just three days ago, on January 3.
A fire outbreak in Sokoto metropolis has caused the death of four persons, a daughter to Secretary to the State Government of Sokoto, Muhammad Bello Sifawa, and her three children.
The deceased mother was also the wife of the Permanent Secretary of the Sokoto State Ministry of Sports and Youths Development, Muhammadu Yusuf Bello.
Only the husband survived the fire which affected the entire 6-bedroom flat while family was sleeping.
Personnel of the state fire service were unable to put out the fire as it had already consumed the house before their arrival.
The remains of the 4 deceased members of the family are slated for burial at Sheikh Shehu Usmanu Danfodiyo Mosque, Sifawa, the family home of the Sokoto State SSG.
The state deputy governor, Idris Mohammed Gobir, members of the state executive council, APC stalwarts, friends and well-wishers have been trooping to Sifawa for burial rites and condolence.
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Aba Power, an electricity distribution company in Nigeria, has announced a significant increase in electricity tariffs for its customers in Abia State, with rates rising by over 50%. The adjustment, which took effect on January 1, 2025, has been approved by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).
Gists9ja reports that the revised tariff structure was shared with customers through a notice posted on the company’s official X account. Under the new rates, customers in Band A feeders will now be charged between ₦219.70 and ₦241.45 per kilowatt-hour, a substantial increase from the previous rate of ₦99/kWh.
Customers in Band B will face rates ranging from ₦180.77 to ₦203/kWh, while those in Band C will pay between ₦145 and ₦205/kWh.
Aba DisCo explained that this tariff increase is necessary to address the challenges posed by the prevailing macroeconomic conditions in Nigeria.
In a statement, the company noted, “This adjustment will enable us to cushion the effects of recent macroeconomic developments on our ability to continue delivering high-quality service to our customers, in compliance with regulatory standards.”
The new tariff structure is part of ongoing efforts to maintain the company’s operations and ensure continued service delivery despite economic challenges.
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