By Joseph Amah, Abuja 

The Federal Government has said there is no way Nigeria can attain economic growth without the citizens paying their taxes as and when due.

The Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo stated this yesterday while declaring open the 24 annual tax conference of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria  (CITN) in Abuja.

The Vice President who was represented by the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service  (FIRS), Muhammad Nami, said the present administration has come to realise that without the citizens promptly paying their taxes, it will be difficult for the government to meet its obligations.

According to him, “Previous administrations had depended almost wholly on oil for revenue,  but when we came in, based on the lessons we learnt from the recent market trends that crude oil, like other commodities  is not a sustainable source of government revenue, we have shifted attention to tax. 

“What we have learnt is that if we must make progress as a nation all of us must pay our taxes for the sake of national development to foster harmony and economic growth.” 

The Vice President said every Nigerian must be prepared not just to pay their share of taxes but also to ensure that all others do the same.

He said that the theme of the conference which is global disruptions,  Taxation and Digitalisation: Implications for Socio-economic Development, captures the prevailing realities within the national and global space.

“Nigeria’s economy is fast digitalising.  This means that the way and manner of doing business has changed. Indeed the radical change is brought about by digitalisation which has made useless the traditional approach to tax administration,” Osinbajo said. 

He added that, “The digitalisation of tax administration is unavoidable, that is why our government has continued to heavily invest in the automation of tax administrative processes and digital infrastructure.

“It is in the best interest of the country that the government at all levels have enough revenue. The lingering issue of insecurity,  crimes and criminality, inadequate social infrastructure can only be addressed if there is adequate revenue in the hand of government.”

He commended the CITN which he said is a critical member of the taxation ecosystem in Nigeria.

As he puts it, “Taxation is a key driver of social harmony,  political stability and economic development and growth.

“Your Institute is a pillar for socio-economic development and the emancipation of the down trodden of the society. It is my belief that your members will continue to discharge their responsibilities of ensuring that the interest of the larger society is not trodden upon, this you must do with patriotic zeal.

“I therefore urge you to support the government and FIRS in the drive towards full digitalisation of the tax administrative processes. That is why in 2021, the  President directed all stakeholders including MDAS to support the tax automation drive of the FIRS.

“Therefore I call on the CITN and every Nigerian to comply with tax rules and encourage others to comply and report those not complying so that we can build the Nigeria of our dreams. We must therefore take our destiny in our hands.”

Earlier in his welcome address,  President of CITN,  Mr. Adesina Adedayo said the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the world in 2020 was a major disruption of the global economy which governments of the world are still struggling to come to terms with.

According to him, “The unprecedented disruptions brought about by COVID-19 pandemic leading to global economic downturn has created new realities which governments, businesses and tax agencies are struggling to contend with. 

“As tax professionals,  we should be more resilient and professional in profering lasting solutions to mitigate these disruptions.”

He expressed misgivings over Nigeria’s refusal to sign the 15 point Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Base  Erosion and Profit Shifting  (OECD-BEPS) Action Plan, particularly action plans 5, 6,13 and 14 which he said form the implimentation of the OECD-BEPS Project 4 minimum requirements which include harmful tax competition,  treaty abuse, country by country reporting and alternative dispute resolution respectively.

He warned that Nigeria’s resort to reciprocal jurisdiction has its own implications in the disruption of the global tax space. 

Chairman of the Tax Conference Committee, Mrs Ruth Arokoyo in her speech said the conference has been packaged to address some salient issues on the application of technology to optimize tax revenue in businesses.

Speaking in an interview, the immediate past president of CITN, Dame Gladys Olajumoke, said this is time for Nigerians to begin to ask questions about how the tax money they paid is used by government to provide for the good of the society.

In her words, “We need to start interrogating spendings by government.  We need to make them know that people will voluntarily pay tax if they see what the tax is being used for.

“It is absurd, every day Nigerians hear N10 billion stollen, N100 billion stollen and so on, it will not encourage anybody to pay tax. 

But when we can interrogate how government is spending tax money, we build confidence.”

 She expressed joy at the turn out at the conference which she said is a sign that  Nigerians are getting interested in tax matters which is why they want to learn more.

She said that the outcome of the conference would be submitted to the authorities and followed up to ensure they are enforced.

The conference which will end on Friday was attended by tax professionals from across the country.