Senate kicks over N17 trillion tax waiver loss

Senate on Monday expressed discontent over a tax waiver loss to the tune of N17 trillion in the past five years urging the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS to do away with tax holidays.

Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, stated this at the 2024 budget defence of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, saying that, previous administrations might have meant well for the introducing tax waivers on certain goods and services, but has been abused.

Musa told the FIRS boss to immediately suspend tax holidays and replace it with
rebating system, which he said, would increase revenue for the nation.

The lawmaker said, tax waivers abuse which has cost the country about N17 trillion loss within the last five years cannot be allowed to continue under any guise.

“Your projection of N19 trillion as total tax collection for 2024 is good when compared to N11.16 trillion achieved in 2023.

“Available records, show that within the last five years, about N17 trillion have been lost by the country to tax waivers.”

Musa’s reaction followed the earlier presentation of the 2023 budget performance of the FIRS by the Chairman, Zacch Adedeji.

Adedeji said, the FIRS has projected the sum of N19.4 trillion as targeted total tax collection for 2024, adding that the fresh N2.7 trillion Tax Credit plan for road construction in the country by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), should be stopped.

Adedeji said: “Regarding tax credit, what I said was that the programme is laudable but that the N2.5 trillion being spent on it by NNPCL should be exhausted before bringing fresh request.”

Senator representing Kogi East Senatorial District and one of the members of the Committee, Jibrin Isah urged the FIRS to cut cost and work hard, saying that the agency can generate N30 trillion revenue in 2024.

Isah said, the FIRS was strategic to liquidating external debts of the nation.

“Why am saying this is that the FIRS and the Nigeria Customs Service have what it takes to generate substantial revenue to complement the NNPC in liquidating the nation’s external debts.”