The Director-General of the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS), Ilorin, Kwara State, Comrade Issa Aremu, has called on Nigerians to give President Bola Ahmed Tinubu “critical, but constructive” support in the tax reforms currently being undertaken by the federal government.
Speaking shortly after leading a group of cyclists on a bicycle ride through parts of Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, in commemoration of his 64th birthday, the Chief Executive Officer of MINILS said that sustainable good governance can only be achieved through enhanced public revenue via “just and progressive taxation.”
Comrade Aremu, who praised President Tinubu for his “audacity to make a change through controversial but inevitable reforms,” stated, “You can agree or disagree with his policy choices, but you cannot doubt President Bola Tinubu’s business-unusual approach to repositioning the country through reforms in all sectors of governance, in line with the renewed hope agenda.”
The Director-General expressed confidence that the National Assembly offers an open platform to improve the content of the proposed four tax bills, adding that those opposing the reforms in the nation’s tax administration should proceed to the National Assembly and voice their concerns.
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Citing the clause that exempts workers earning minimum wage from the tax net as commendable, Aremu suggested that the exemptions should be further expanded to cover the “working poor,” whose wages, due to inflation and Naira devaluation, have been eroded, thereby diminishing their purchasing power.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has made his intentions regarding tax reforms clear, and this has been duly communicated to the National Assembly. The President should be encouraged to accompany these tax reforms with good governance reforms that will re-industrialize Nigeria, create decent work, and banish poverty. Those who disagree with the tax reform bills should proceed to the National Assembly and express their positions.”
He also mentioned that arrangements are almost complete for MINILS to hold a citizenship engagement with the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms to highlight the benefits of the proposed bills.
While appreciating the President and the 10th National Assembly for enacting the 2024 National Minimum Wage Act, which sets the minimum wage at N70,000, Aremu urged organized labor and employers to partner with President Tinubu to ensure the payment of both minimum and living wages for workers. He emphasized that a wage-led economic recovery plan, backed by improved productivity, is essential for sustainable development.
The Director-General commended the President’s commitment, expressed in the Presidential media, to living wages as a tool to combat corruption, adding that when civil servants are well remunerated, they are less susceptible to corruption.
Meanwhile, Aremu also praised Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara State for bringing development to the state.
“I’m dedicating my birthday to the dynamic Governor of Kwara State and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) for obvious reasons. The road in my area was previously not motorable, but through the renewed hope agenda, the governor has constructed the road,” he said.
