Why FG Must Raise Taxes, by Industry, Trade Minister
The federal government said it is determined to raise taxes as the only way to have funds to meet up with the responsibilities before it.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Niyi Adebayo, who disclosed this weekend added that the only way to increase revenue generation was through more tax.
Adebayo who spoke on the occasion of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce (LCCI) 2019 Presidential Policy Dialogue on the Economy, said there was no way government revenue can increase without more taxes.
He said this while responding to the statement by the President of LCCI, Mr. Babatunde Ruwase who lamented that the taxes being introduced by the three tiers of government were affecting the growth manufacturing sector.
But the Minister said, “You want us not to increase tax but you want us to increase revenue. May be, you will come and advise us on how to do it because I think that will require some serious magic. But one thing I can assure you is that I don’t think government has any plan to reduce tax at this point in time.
“What we are doing is that government has embarked on aggressive tax collection and is doing everything possible to increase the tax bracket so that all the money the government has not been able to get in the past will be collected to improve our revenue generation.
“I believe that there are certain things that should be done by the private sector. That is why we are here. It is for you to tell government how to make it easie for you to achieve these things. If you tell us, and advise us on how government can assist to make it easier for you to promote your businesses, then we will do our best to make things easier for you. I am here to listen to your problems.”
The LCCI President said multiple taxations from the three tiers of government have remained the headaches of many companies.
Ruwase said, “While we were grappling with this, we heard the announcement of an increase in VAT from five percent to 7.5 percent.
“This will no doubt put additional pressure on businesses because consu
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