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Deploying Inputs From Senator Lamai’s Lecture For Good Governance
By Semi Reye
On May 26, 2023, few days to the inauguration of the Ahmed Bola Tinubu administration, the late Senator Ekpemopriri Akhagbemhe Lamai lectures held at the prestigious Shehu Musa Ya’radua center in the central business district of Abuja, the nation’s capital.
The maiden event sponsored by the Senator Lamai Foundation had prominent Nigerians in session who interrogated our governance style albeit, legislative governance in a constitutional democracy with profound food of thoughts and recommendations as work models and inputs for the administration of Ahmed Bola Tinubu and the 10th national assembly .
Former governors in the ilk of distinguished Senator Osariemhe Osunbor , who was also ex -chairman of the Nigerian law reforms commission, Senator and ex-governor of Imo state, Owelle Anayo Rochas Okorocha, former labor President and governor of Edo state, senator- elect, comrade Adams Oshiomhole, ex- Edo deputy governor and former Chief of Staff to President Goodluck Jonathan, Chief
Mike Oghiadomhe, a former Chief Whip of the Senate and oil expert, Chief Kassim Oyofo were in attendance.
The memorial event which has been adopted as a yearly congregate also had prominent personality, a legal luminary and constitutional lawyer as guest speaker who probed a contemporary issue in his lecture titled ‘X-raying the Nigerian Senate (1st-4th Republic) as a Tool for Nation Building.
Others who graced the occasion, included Senator Francis Alimikhena, Senator Abubakar Umar Gada from Sokoto state and Sanusi Daggash, a former minister as well as Sir Chief Peter Aliu, a former Director of Protocol of the MFCT. The Abuja branch chairman of Fugar Progressives Union, Dr. Andrew Oba Iteghie who led his executive and members of the union in the FCT to grace the occasion, also added color and valor to the lecture series which has been declared a yearly gala of intellectual grilling.
However, addressing invitees in his welcome remarks, executive director of the foundation and scion of the Lamai dynasty, Chief Richard Lamai, tasked the resource persons who are eminent experts in jurisprudence constitutional and commercial law as well as captains of industries to deploy discussions and ideas preferred during session as immense resource for the administration of the All progressives congress, APC, headed by President Ahmed Bola Tinubu, who incidentally was a senator in the 3rd republic and the yet to be inducted 10th session of the national assembly to make equitable policies and laws for Nigerians irrespective of their status in society.
He noted that the lecture series was a memorial for his late senator-father, who desired egalitarianism and believed in achieving such virtue in a democratic system and therefore, it was imperative that the APC administration and members of the National Assembly, the Senate and House of Representatives design policies and make quality and equitable laws that will benefit Nigerians
“My father, our father desired egalitarianism and believed in achieving this in a democratic setting” the younger Lamai explained.
According to him, his late father stood for the people and believed in an egalitarian society were resources are equitably distributed.
“Our Father was a humane community organizer and developer that placed the upliftment of his fellow man before his personal comfort”.
‘’At various times he spoke truth to temporary powers at the risk of his life, gave up homes so that people can be educated, channeled infrastructure development and championed minority rights. No wonder he confronted the colonialists’’ he stated
The APC Chieftain, consequently challenged the new National Assembly and government at the center to evaluate the consequences of democratically made laws by legislation and policies of government and see if they meet the development agenda envisioned for the people by his late father, Senator E. A. Lamai
Catechizing the egalitarian society which the late Senator Lamai wished for and which the lecture recommendations tends to reinforce , one area of interest is the rising cost of governance, specifically the cost of maintaining the legislature which is draining the national purse, and for which various thoughts, schools of opinions, analysts have argued for, or against a part or full time legislature.
Putting in perspective the vexed issue, Senator Victor Oyofo and former Edo Governor Senator Osarhiemen Osubor and other Senators, like Umar Gada and Senator Rochas Okorocha who spoke separately, advanced salient reasons either for part time Senate in order to save cost of running the National Legislature, or to remain as full time, as well as the urgent need to restructure the Upper Chamber if the idea behind legislature must be achieved.
Speaking as Chairman of the Memorial Lecture, a former Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Victor Oyofo ,expressed concern over the expensive nature of running government in Nigeria, particularly the National Assembly.
He canvassed part-time membership of the National Assembly as well as a unicameral legislature as against the present system of bicameral, warning that even though Nigeria adopted the presidential system copied from America, it does not have the institutions that support the successful running of the presidential experiment
The former whip who had verifiable statistics to back his submission, noted that in 2017 alone, the lawmaker cost the taxpayers $54,000 each, adding that the legislative arm which was supposed to check the executives and indeed its democratic arm failed to mature or keep up to its objectives, more so that after more than 20 years, it has proved ineffective and expensive.
Quoting, #openNass organisation, Oyofo disclosed that in the year 2017 alone, a lawmaker cost the taxpayers’ $54,000 each. This is 10,000 times more than the minimum wage and 200 times the National Gross Domestic Product per capital.
The costs are rising as we speak: The administrative cost of the Presidential system which includes the 36 Governors and the running of FCT leave very little for the development of the people. This according to Senator Oyofo leads to unemployment, insecurity, a trend he advised must not be allowed to continue, lest it creates insurmountable problems that will consume the nation.
He revealed that politics in Nigeria was becoming the quickest way to an unearned wealth, the situation, he also admitted was exacerbated by the immunity clause which allows governors, many for example who have treated their security votes which amount to billions as pocket money to be immune from closer examination.
For that reason , Oyofo warned that the dangerous trend is not unnoticed by the populace, even if they appear hopeless and speechless, but that common sense would reveal from events already growing and manifesting in the killing of citizens and insecurity. A change of direction, he cautioned was imperative
But faulting the former Senate whip, his colleague then and ex-Governor of Edo State, Senator Oserheimen Osunbor , explained that the nation is better off with a bicameral legislature than a unicameral legislature.
Osunbor noted that it was not the budget of the National Assembly that has been responsible for the magnitude of the challenges confronting Nigeria. According to him, the Senate is important to democracy because it gives the states equal representations.
Being part of the legislative arm of government, the Senate he argued has the distinct feature of being the arm of government that is closest to the people: The constituents, the public, have easy access to their Senators than they would have to their governors or even the President or Vice President or Deputy Governor.
“So, the Senators are more accessible to the people. They are closer to the people, more accountable to the people. And they represent a bastion of democracy. They are the engine room, the think-tank of democracy’ Osunbor submitted.
The Professor of law and ex- chairman of the Nigerian Law Reform Commission also argued that as the first amongst the three arms of government, because for the executive to function there must be laws that are passed by the legislative arm of government and of course as checks and balance over the executive arm of government, the legislature is very important. It is very important, particularly in a country like Nigeria, to have a Senate as against just having a House of Representatives. This point he said is sacrosanct because many Nigerians express the view that the Senate is unnecessary, that they need a unicameral system of only the House of Representatives. Part of their reason is that it will save cost, but in contrasts and for a number of reasons from that view, Senator Osunbor demanded to know how much really is the budget of the National Assembly in comparison to the budget of the Federal Government?
‘’I understand that it is only about 2.5 percent of the total budget, so, even if you consider 2.5 percent of the national budget, really it is not a reason that we are having the problems of the magnitude that we are having in Nigeria’’, he said.
The point I am making, in short, he continued, is that the Senate is very important in the sense that even in the constituencies; it gives opportunities for communities and the constituent units of the senatorial districts, the states, and even the country to have a fair chance of representation
He added that the Senate will ensure for instance, in one Senatorial district, why the Senator is coming from one part, the House of Representatives member may come from another part and that will tend to douse agitation about marginalization. And also, the Senate is on the basis of equality of states because if you are to rely only on the House of Representatives, which is usually by population, again, there will be agitations that parts of the country with states with higher population are oppressing states with lower population. So, having a Senate counter-balances that by having equality of states, while the House of Representatives are on the basis of population.
Professor Osunbor extolled the nation- building virtues which the late Senator Lamai played during the First Republic and disclosed that successive generations of senators have been emulating him and playing their part and charged the incoming tenth National Assembly Senators to emulate the late Senator by playing their own role in nation building.
Speaking on his part, former Governor of Imo State, Senator Okorocha, noted that it was better to restructure the Senate than embrace a unicameral system of legislature. Okorocha who premised his position on grounds of being a former governor and sitting senator, noted that he has gone through the mill of executive and the legislature and could state categorically that, if Nigeria must have a Senate, the entire structure of the Senate must change.”
He further said that the Senate and the Executive were too heavy for Nigeria, which was why he objected to the population of the Senate two weeks upon resumption at the National Assembly.
But in chat with newsmen at the event, former Edo governor and Senator-elect for Edo North senatorial district, Comrade Adams, Oshiomhole ,noted that Nigeria had huge economic crisis, with huge debt burden, huge numbers of expectations, huge numbers of unemployed and cautioned that it was the duty of Senators to mirror the reality of life in their various constituencies and allow the realities to inform their attitudes and policy choices that will be available.
However, one of the panelists, Senator Abubakar Umar Gada who represented Sokoto East from 2007 to 2011, differed openly from others and traced the problem of Nigeria to endemic corruption and neither total breakdown of moral values and not the structure nor the National assembly budget of 2.5 percent of the national budget.
Delivering the lecture titled ‘X-raying the Nigerian Senate (1st-4th Republic) as a Tool for Nation Building,’ Chief Mike Ozekhomhe (SAN) said that the Nigerian Senate holds a crucial position as the upper chamber of the country’s bicameral legislature that should actively shape the nation’s political landscape and policy framework.
He argued that throughout Nigeria’s history, from its first Republic to the present day, the Senate has served as a significant platform for national deliberation, legislation, and nation building
According to him, several steps which include strengthening ethical standards, promoting transparency and implementing effective anti-corruption are crucial to making the senate a tool for nation building. He added that the senate needs continuous capacity building and professional development to ensure effective representation and informed decision making among others.
Though Ozekhomhe lamented that there could be manifest challenges, looking at the senate within the period under review( 1st-4th republic), addressing such challenges and building on the modest successes, the Senate , especially this 10th Senate can become an even more powerful instrument for fostering national development , promoting good governance , protecting fundamental rights and advancing the collective aspirations of the Nigerian people as envisioned by the late Senator Ekpemoriri Akhagbemhe Lamai
Reye wrote from Auchi, Edo State
***calls on Tinubu to sack Kyari immediately, as refinery stops production
For coming out to disparage a leader from the host community of the Port Harcourt refinery, a group, known as Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria (NOPCN), has come hard on the foremost regulatory agency, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
This was, even as, the group has called on President Bola Tinubu to relieve the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari of his duties, for misleading the President and Nigerians about the operation of the Port Harcourt refinery.
In a statement on Sunday signed by the President, Engr. Igeniwari Edward, and Comrade Omototsho Ogbe, the group corroborated the comments of the Secretary of the Alesa Community Stakeholders, Timothy Mgbere, saying, the petroleum products loaded from the newly rehabilitated Port-Harcourt Refinery were not freshly refined but dead stocks left in the storage tank of the facility since 2016.
“Before shutting down in 2016, the Port Harcourt refinery had some large quantity of dead stock left in the tank, and were only evacuated from the storage to some trucks during the rehabilitation of Old Area 5.
“Some dead stocks like Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) DPK (kerosene), and Automated Gas Oil (diesel) were stored in the tanks in large quantity. What NNPC did was to evacuate them into waiting trucks, making the President and Nigerians to believe they were loading freshly refined products into those trucks.
“It is not only Chief Mgbere that knew about this fact, all of us from Alesa, infact, all the suburbs in Eleme can attest to this.
“It also doesn’t surprise us that the NNPCL shut down the refinery sooner than they claimed it was operating. That’s because they ran out of lies and couldn’t cajole the President any further.
“Kyari should be so sober right now and I believe he is already aware that the much celebrated 60,000 capacity segment of the refinery they claimed to have rehabilitated was shut down 2 days ago and no activity is happening there any longer.
“The President should not wait any further before he sacks Mele Kyari and all his accomplices in this national monumental trick they pulled on Nigerians on Tuesday. He should not only be sacked, Kyari should tell Nigerians what happened to over N17 trillion naira injected into the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries.
“Nigerians should also join our Network to say NO to conversion of any of the refineries to a blending plant. We all know the environmental degredations our people having been facing over oil exploration and bunkering activities. We don’t want any further hazard on our land. Kyari should just deliver exactly what the government paid for and stop fighting our leaders in the host communities”, the statement read.
Chief Mgbere, Secretary to Alesa Community Stakeholders Forum, had appeared on a national television show on Thursday, alleging that the Port Harcourt refinery only loaded six trucks on Tuesday, despite stating that 200 trucks would be picked up from the refinery daily, adding that the many trucks parked within the premises were tucked up with dead stock and off-spec of old products.
Alesa, one of the 10 major communities in Eleme, Rivers State, is the host community of the Port-Harcourt Refinery.
But in response to the allegations, the NNPCL denied claims by an Alesa community leader, in a statement signed Friday by its Spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, saying the agency did not lie when it said the Port Harcourt refinery was producing crude oil.
The NNPCL accused Mgbere of crass ignorance of how a refinery runs, saying he would not have dignified him with a response if not for a need to set the records straight.
“We call on the general public to disregard the claims of the self-acclaimed ‘community person’ which are obviously borne out of sheer mischief and blatant display of ignorance,” NNPCL had said.
Meanwhile, exclusive report emerging from Sahara Reporters Saturday night corroborated the position of the Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria, that the NNPCL has shut down operation “at the moment” with only its non-petroleum unit running which is the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU).
The CDU produces naphtha, kerosene and diesel but cannot produce the component which is needed for the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol, top sources at the refinery disclosed to SaharaReporters on Saturday.
“The Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) is still running but the operation of the depot is shut down at the moment. The CDU produces naphtha, diesel and Kerosene but cannot produce theP’Harcout Refinery: CSO knocks NNPCL for berating host community leader
***calls on Tinubu to sack Kyari immediately, as refinery stops production
For coming out to disparage a leader from the host community of the Port Harcourt refinery, a group, known as Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria (NOPCN), has come hard on the foremost regulatory agency, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
This was, even as, the group has called on President Bola Tinubu to relieve the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari of his duties, for misleading the President and Nigerians about the operation of the Port Harcourt refinery.
In a statement on Sunday signed by the President, Engr. Igeniwari Edward, and Comrade Omototsho Ogbe, the group corroborated the comments of the Secretary of the Alesa Community Stakeholders, Timothy Mgbere, saying, the petroleum products loaded from the newly rehabilitated Port-Harcourt Refinery were not freshly refined but dead stocks left in the storage tank of the facility since 2016.
“Before shutting down in 2016, the Port Harcourt refinery had some large quantity of dead stock left in the tank, and were only evacuated from the storage to some trucks during the rehabilitation of Old Area 5.
“Some dead stocks like Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) DPK (kerosene), and Automated Gas Oil (diesel) were stored in the tanks in large quantity. What NNPC did was to evacuate them into waiting trucks, making the President and Nigerians to believe they were loading freshly refined products into those trucks.
“It is not only Chief Mgbere that knew about this fact, all of us from Alesa, infact, all the suburbs in Eleme can attest to this.
“It also doesn’t surprise us that the NNPCL shut down the refinery sooner than they claimed it was operating. That’s because they ran out of lies and couldn’t cajole the President any further.
“Kyari should be so sober right now and I believe he is already aware that the much celebrated 60,000 capacity segment of the refinery they claimed to have rehabilitated was shut down 2 days ago and no activity is happening there any longer.
“The President should not wait any further before he sacks Mele Kyari and all his accomplices in this national monumental trick they pulled on Nigerians on Tuesday. He should not only be sacked, Kyari should tell Nigerians what happened to over N17 trillion naira injected into the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries.
“Nigerians should also join our Network to say NO to conversion of any of the refineries to a blending plant. We all know the environmental degredations our people having been facing over oil exploration and bunkering activities. We don’t want any further hazard on our land. Kyari should just deliver exactly what the government paid for and stop fighting our leaders in the host communities”, the statement read.
Chief Mgbere, Secretary to Alesa Community Stakeholders Forum, had appeared on a national television show on Thursday, alleging that the Port Harcourt refinery only loaded six trucks on Tuesday, despite stating that 200 trucks would be picked up from the refinery daily, adding that the many trucks parked within the premises were tucked up with dead stock and off-spec of old products.
Alesa, one of the 10 major communities in Eleme, Rivers State, is the host community of the Port-Harcourt Refinery.
But in response to the allegations, the NNPCL denied claims by an Alesa community leader, in a statement signed Friday by its Spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, saying the agency did not lie when it said the Port Harcourt refinery was producing crude oil.
The NNPCL accused Mgbere of crass ignorance of how a refinery runs, saying he would not have dignified him with a response if not for a need to set the records straight.
“We call on the general public to disregard the claims of the self-acclaimed ‘community person’ which are obviously borne out of sheer mischief and blatant display of ignorance,” NNPCL had said.
Meanwhile, exclusive report emerging from Sahara Reporters Saturday night corroborated the position of the Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria, that the NNPCL has shut down operation “at the moment” with only its non-petroleum unit running which is the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU).
The CDU produces naphtha, kerosene and diesel but cannot produce the component which is needed for the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol, top sources at the refinery disclosed to SaharaReporters on Saturday.
“The Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) is still running but the operation of the depot is shut down at the moment. The CDU produces naphtha, diesel and Kerosene but cannot produce the component for the production of PMS.
“All these products cannot serve the masses as the production of these products are in small P’Harcout Refinery: CSO knocks NNPCL for berating host community leader
***calls on Tinubu to sack Kyari immediately, as refinery stops production
For coming out to disparage a leader from the host community of the Port Harcourt refinery, a group, known as Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria (NOPCN), has come hard on the foremost regulatory agency, Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).
This was, even as, the group has called on President Bola Tinubu to relieve the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari of his duties, for misleading the President and Nigerians about the operation of the Port Harcourt refinery.
In a statement on Sunday signed by the President, Engr. Igeniwari Edward, and Comrade Omototsho Ogbe, the group corroborated the comments of the Secretary of the Alesa Community Stakeholders, Timothy Mgbere, saying, the petroleum products loaded from the newly rehabilitated Port-Harcourt Refinery were not freshly refined but dead stocks left in the storage tank of the facility since 2016.
“Before shutting down in 2016, the Port Harcourt refinery had some large quantity of dead stock left in the tank, and were only evacuated from the storage to some trucks during the rehabilitation of Old Area 5.
“Some dead stocks like Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) DPK (kerosene), and Automated Gas Oil (diesel) were stored in the tanks in large quantity. What NNPC did was to evacuate them into waiting trucks, making the President and Nigerians to believe they were loading freshly refined products into those trucks.
“It is not only Chief Mgbere that knew about this fact, all of us from Alesa, infact, all the suburbs in Eleme can attest to this.
“It also doesn’t surprise us that the NNPCL shut down the refinery sooner than they claimed it was operating. That’s because they ran out of lies and couldn’t cajole the President any further.
“Kyari should be so sober right now and I believe he is already aware that the much celebrated 60,000 capacity segment of the refinery they claimed to have rehabilitated was shut down 2 days ago and no activity is happening there any longer.
“The President should not wait any further before he sacks Mele Kyari and all his accomplices in this national monumental trick they pulled on Nigerians on Tuesday. He should not only be sacked, Kyari should tell Nigerians what happened to over N17 trillion naira injected into the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries.
“Nigerians should also join our Network to say NO to conversion of any of the refineries to a blending plant. We all know the environmental degredations our people having been facing over oil exploration and bunkering activities. We don’t want any further hazard on our land. Kyari should just deliver exactly what the government paid for and stop fighting our leaders in the host communities”, the statement read.
Chief Mgbere, Secretary to Alesa Community Stakeholders Forum, had appeared on a national television show on Thursday, alleging that the Port Harcourt refinery only loaded six trucks on Tuesday, despite stating that 200 trucks would be picked up from the refinery daily, adding that the many trucks parked within the premises were tucked up with dead stock and off-spec of old products.
Alesa, one of the 10 major communities in Eleme, Rivers State, is the host community of the Port-Harcourt Refinery.
But in response to the allegations, the NNPCL denied claims by an Alesa community leader, in a statement signed Friday by its Spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, saying the agency did not lie when it said the Port Harcourt refinery was producing crude oil.
The NNPCL accused Mgbere of crass ignorance of how a refinery runs, saying he would not have dignified him with a response if not for a need to set the records straight.
“We call on the general public to disregard the claims of the self-acclaimed ‘community person’ which are obviously borne out of sheer mischief and blatant display of ignorance,” NNPCL had said.
Meanwhile, exclusive report emerging from Sahara Reporters Saturday night corroborated the position of the Network of Oil Producing Communities in Nigeria, that the NNPCL has shut down operation “at the moment” with only its non-petroleum unit running which is the Crude Distillation Unit (CDU).
The CDU produces naphtha, kerosene and diesel but cannot produce the component which is needed for the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as petrol, top sources at the refinery disclosed to SaharaReporters on Saturday.
“The Crude Distillation Unit (CDU) is still running but the operation of the depot is shut down at the moment. The CDU produces naphtha, diesel and Kerosene but cannot produce the component for the production of PMS.
“All these products cannot serve the masses as the production of these products are in small quantities even if the plant runs at 100% throughput. The processing plant of 150,000bpd capacity will commence operations in 2026; that is if money is made readily available to meet the timelines because at the moment the project has exceeded $2billion”, a top official of the agency told Sahara Reporters even if the plant runs at 100% throughput. The processing plant of 150,000bpd capacity will commence operations in 2026; that is if money is made readily available to meet the timelines because at the moment the project has exceeded $2billion”, a top official of the agency told Sahara Reporters component for the production of PMS.
“All these products cannot serve the masses as the production of these products are in small quantities even if the plant runs at 100% throughput. The processing plant of 150,000bpd capacity will commence operations in 2026; that is if money is made readily available to meet the timelines because at the moment the project has exceeded $2billion”, a top official of the agency told Sahara Reporters
………Set for Public hearing with stakeholders
The Senate Thursday led Nigerians into the general objectives of the Tax Reform Bills
The Bills are a set of four proposed piece of legislation aimed at increasing value-added tax (VAT) distributable to the subnational governments to 55% while reducing the federal government’s share to 10%.
The new legislative regimes also proposed zero VAT on exports and essential consumptions by the masses and grant of input VAT credit on assets and services in addition to goods consumed by businesses to lower the cost of production
The breakdown of the general objectives of the Bill were let out in the lead debate by Senate Leader , Opeyemi Bamidele
Recall that the Tinubu administration had proposed the Tax Reform Bills comprising the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024; Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024; Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024 and Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024.
The bills elicited mixed reactions from across board
Key stakeholders such ad the Chairman, Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele and Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Dr. Zacch Adedeji were invited to give perspectives about the Bills.
Leading debate at the plenary, Bamidele reeled out far-reaching proposals contained in the Tax Reform Bills, which according to him, aims at simplifying the tax landscape, reducing the burden on small business and streamlining how taxes are collected.
In the area of tax exemptions, Bamidele pointed out that those, whose salaries are not more than the minimum wage from Pay As You Earn (PAYE) deductions, would be exempted from the tax regime.
He also said small businesses with annual turnover of N50 million or less “are equally exempted from payment of taxes,” a key pro-business initiative that encourages job creation; deepens ease of doing business and incentivises more investments.
Similarly, the senate leader explained that there was a proposed huge reduction in company income tax from the current 30% to 25% that would last for at least two years.
He said: “As part of deliberate attempt to curtail the incidence of double taxation and multiplicity of taxes and levies, multiple taxes hitherto paid by companies under various tax heads namely 2.5% education tax, 0.25% NASENI tax have been harmonized into a development level of 2% which by 2030 will be applied to fund the newly established student loan scheme which will benefit many Nigerian youths.
“Unlike what is obtainable under the existing tax regime whereby the Federal Government takes a lion share of VAT revenues, it is proposed that the sharing formula should allow the State Government share 55% of VAT revenue from the current 15% to 10% sharing formula.
“However, Local Governments share of VAT revenue remains unaffected. Relatedly, basic items consumed by Nigerian households such as food items, medical services and pharmaceuticals, educational fees, electricity etc. are exempted from VAT.
“Again, as part of efforts to ease the administration of income taxes and levies across the Federation, there is a reasonable effort made to consolidate core tax statutes and related tax legislations,” Bamidele explained.
Contrary to misrepresentations in the public domain regarding the intendment of the Bills under consideration, Bamidele explained that the bills contained innovative and people-oriented proposals as part of the government’s deliberate fiscal and tax reform measures to cushion the effect of ongoing broader economic policies such as the removal of subsidy on petroleum products, renewed efforts to implement cost -reflective electricity tariffs in the power sector etc on Nigerian citizens.
In his contribution, former Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Ali Ndume (Borno South) claimed that his problem was about timing and the issue of derivation.
He added that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) must be amended before the Tax Reform Bills should take effect, therefore calling for its immediate withdrawal.
Ndume observed: “I am not against the reform, my problem is timing and the issue of derivation make the reform contagious. The 1999 Constitution has to be amended before the bills can be effective.”
However, the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Mohammed Munguno (Borno North) expressed strong objection to Ndume’s submissions, asking the Senate to disregard it and pass the bills for second reading.
Munguno urged the Senate to pass the bill into second reading, advocating that all areas of concern would be addressed at the public hearing stage.
After the debate that featured Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa and Chairman, Senate Committee on Ecology, Senator Seriake Dickson, the Senate unanimously passed the bills into second reading following Munguno’s final position.
In his remarks, the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio referred the bill to the Senate Committee on Finance, advising the Committee to invite all the stakeholders to the public hearing to address all areas of concern.
***warns Kyari, others not to mislead Tinubu, Nigerians
As reactions continue to thrill the announcement by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), that the Port Harcourt refinery has been activated for operation; a group of Civil Society Organisations has called for great caution.
The groups, under the aegis of Coalition for Accountability and Transparency in Energy Sector (CATES), said what the NNPCL was glorifying was not a full fledged refinery which Nigerians paid for.
In a statement on Wednesday by the Spokesperson of the Coalition, Dr. Linus Ikwur, the groups alluded that, despite the public outcry from stakeholders, organisations and individuals, warning against turning the Port Harcourt refinery to a blending plant, the NNPCL made good its intention and damned whatever would come out of it.
The coalition described the much celebrated Port Harcourt refinery as “what I ordered, vs what I got”, saying, the NNPCL did not mean well for the country and the citizenry, by converting the heritage refinery in Port Harcourt to a mere blending plant, despite receiving huge funds to operationalize it.
“The NNPCL was given money to turn Port Harcourt into a full fledged refinery. But now they want to turn the place into a blending plant, despite the public outcry on the dangers of having a blending plant in the region that is already suffering environmental degredation.
“Nigerians paid for a refinery and not a blending plant. This is a clear case of what I ordered vs what I got.
“There’s a need for great accountability, transparency and probity in ensuring that the refineries operate at 100% capacity and not as a blending plant”, the statement said.
Speaking further, the Coalition expressed great disappointment with the announcement of NNPCL, confirming that the refinery was to serve as a blending plant, which it described as a global practise; warning that the agency should cease the deception forthwith.
Dr. Ikwur said, “to us, it did not come as a surprise, because we saw it coming and we have raised enough alarms, so that it could be averted, but the authority kept calm, until the NNPCL perfected its plan to convert our heritage refinery into a blending plant. But we were highly disappointed, that the NNPCL misled Nigerians, including President Bola Tinubu into believing that the Port Harcourt refinery had come back to live.
“It took the great effort of the the media, Sahara Reporters in particular, to confirm our claims that Nigerians were indeed celebrating a blending plant, and not a refinery. Nigerians are too wise for that grand deception and Mr. President should not fall for that kind of cheap attempt to score political goals by the NNPCL.
“Mele Kyari and his cohorts should stop misleading the President. They should rather come out and explain how the over N17 trillion expended on our local refineries went and why is it that none of the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries is working, after receiving such a humongous funding”.
It would be recalled that, the NNPC posted on its X handle on Tuesday, saying: “NNPC Ltd Delivers Port Harcourt Refinery as plant begins truckout of products today, Tuesday 26th November 2024 at 1.45 pm.
“Watch the commissioning and trucking out event LIVE.”
But Sahara Reporters, in an exclusive report Tuesday night, exposed that, the NNPCL “is not trucking out Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol, from the Port Harcourt Refinery as it claimed on Tuesday”, claiming a top source within the system revealed it.
Instead, it said the NNPCL bought “Cracked C5 petroleum resins” and blended it with other products including Naphtha to sell to the Nigerian public as though the refinery processed it.
“The plant is running but it is the old one of 60,000bpd capacity but you can’t get PMS from it except diesel. The part that produces PMS is yet to start.
“If you hear they are trucking out PMS from the depot, know it is a lie. They bought Crack C5 from Indorama company in Port Harcourt and blended it with Naphtha to sell to the public”, the source told Sahara Reporters.
Unexpectedly, the Spokesperson for the NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye swiftly confirmed the claims in a statement Tuesday night, saying, “blending is a standard practice in refineries globally”.
Soneye said, “It is worth noting that the refinery incorporates crack C5, a blending component from our sister company, Indorama Petrochemicals (formerly Eleme Petrochemicals), to produce gasoline that meets required specifications.
“Blending is a standard practice in refineries globally, as no single unit can produce gasoline that fully complies with any country’s standards without such processes. Additionally, we have made substantial progress on the new Port Harcourt Refinery, which will begin operations soon without prior announcements”.
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