Muhammad Shehu, Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, emphasizes the importance of tax payment by Nigerians to increase government revenue and enhance service delivery.
He expressed concern over the fact that fewer than 40 million Nigerians are currently registered taxpayers, which he considers inadequate for a nation with a population exceeding 200 million.
Shehu, during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, also clarified that political officeholders in Nigeria do not receive excessive salaries and benefits, contrary to popular belief.
Furthermore, the RMAFC leader mentioned the development of software by the commission to improve transparency in revenue generation and distribution among the three tiers of government. He praised the establishment of a Tax Reform Committee by President Bola Tinubu, highlighting its potential to bring more participants from the informal sector into the tax system.
“There is all this debate about the informal economy. What this tax reform committee will do is bring a lot of agencies together, including RMAFC. We are members of that committee. We have articulated our position, and we will communicate what we believe can add value to the discussion.
“At the end of it all, we will have a better society where more people are paying taxes and the money will be utilised for better services and infrastructure so that every Nigerian can benefit,” he said.
He called upon the Federal Inland Revenue Service to work in cooperation with the Nigeria Customs Service to pinpoint specific groups of Nigerians who engage in tax evasion.
“There are some taxes that the government is not getting from Nigerians. I believe the FIRS will look at all those things and then collaborate with the NCS for better efficiency.
“I think it is very important for every Nigerian to try and pay their taxes because it is from those monies that you get services.
“All the things that people like to tell you about clean environments, good roads, and functional infrastructure in other countries—it is the taxes that citizens pay that are utilised for those services.
“People should learn to pay electricity bills; they should pay their water bills; they should pay just like you pay for telephone recharge cards.
“The more you pay your taxes, the more money the government has to put into road and rail construction, better hospitals, pensions, social security, and a better plan to help the needy,” he said.
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