Ahmad Gumi, a Kaduna-based Islamic cleric, has backed President Bola Tinubu’s tax reform bills, saying the proposed laws are a wake-up call to northern Nigerian leaders to develop their region.

Gumi said the tax reform bills would create more opportunities in the economy than the existing tax system, which promotes multiple taxation.

The cleric stated this on two different occasions on Tuesday and Wednesday in Kaduna. The videos of the conversation were posted on his Facebook page.

The bills are the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024 -SB.583; the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024- SB.584; and the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, 2024- SB. 585; and the Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024 – SB.586.

Some experts said most critics of the bills had not read their provisions and were only amplifying falsehoods circulated by uninformed interest groups.

Gumi lamented that the debate on the bills is political. He said northern leaders should instead debate their region’s backwardness and why they allow industries and banks to go bankrupt.

However, he identified grey areas in the bills. He said the VAT sharing formula that ignited the debate should be given a second look.

“I heard people debating that Lagos will benefit more from the new sharing formula in the proposed tax reform bills; this should not be the issue to debate on; our leaders should not say so. You said the corporate headquarters were relocated to Lagos, where are your banks’ headquarters in Kaduna or Kano?

“You people were sleeping; you deliberately allowed the population to wallow in poverty. You are shouting over the tax reform bills; where are our industries? Who among you invested in the industries in Kakuri to sustain them? Only the breweries are still functional in the area. We are always applying politics on issues where there is no need for it.

“Nigeria needs the new tax system to move away from the obsolete system that promotes multiple taxation. You cannot throw away the tax reform bills, adopt them, and address their grey areas.

“If we want development, let’s build industries, cultivate more land, and have banks,” Gumi said to the northern leaders.

“Nigeria is blessed with wealth across all regions, so our leaders are treated with dignity globally. France is treating Nigeria with caution; the way they warmly received President Bola Tinubu means a lot.”

Gumi said the debate on the tax reform bills should be conducted by people who are knowledgeable in the field.

“The tax reform bills exempting low-income earners from paying taxes is a welcome development. This should apply to all low-cadre workers, including security agents; doing so will greatly help Nigerians.

“The attempt of the president to reform the collection system is commendable, continuing in the old system will not be good for the country because of the multiple taxation,” the cleric said.

PT