The South-East Caucus in the Senate has expressed the need for broader consultations on the proposed tax reform bills currently under consideration by the National Assembly. The caucus made its position known on Monday following a closed-door meeting of senators from the five southeastern states, held in the office of Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (APGA, Abia South), the caucus leader.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Senator Abaribe, who is also the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Power, emphasized that South-East senators were not opposed to the tax reform bills. However, they stressed the importance of engaging constituents and stakeholders to ensure an equitable and inclusive approach to the legislations.
“As much as the entire Senators from the South-East geopolitical zone are concerned, we are not against the Tax Reform Bills currently pending before both chambers of the National Assembly for consideration,” Abaribe stated. “We only want wider consultations to be carried out on them. Specifically, we need to consult with our constituents across the 15 Senatorial Districts in the Zone, with our state governments, and other critical stakeholders.”
The tax reform bills, which include the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill 2024, the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill 2024, and the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill 2024, have been a subject of controversy since President Bola Tinubu transmitted them to the National Assembly on October 3, 2024.
Abaribe noted that the South-East caucus seeks to ensure that insights from their consultations would contribute to a more equitable framework for the eventual passage of the bills. “We have read through the bills and want to share our knowledge with other stakeholders from the South-East zone for a much more equitable framework in the bills that would eventually be passed,” he said.
The senators, however, did not specify a timeframe for the consultations, raising questions about the potential impact on the four-week deadline given to the Senate Committee on Finance to submit its report.
The South-East caucus joins other groups such as the Nigerian Governors’ Forum, the Northern Senators Forum, and the Arewa Consultative Forum in demanding broader stakeholder engagement on the tax reform bills. On the other hand, the South-South and South-West caucuses in the Senate, alongside the executive arm of the federal government, are advocating for the immediate consideration of the bills.
The House of Representatives has already suspended further deliberations on the bills pending the outcome of extensive consultations and robust stakeholder engagement.
The tax reform bills are landmark fiscal proposals aimed at overhauling Nigeria’s tax system, but their provisions have sparked intense debates across the country. With the South-East caucus aligning with calls for wider consultations, the fate of the bills remains uncertain as they navigate the legislative process.