President Bola Tinubu is set to dispatch an "emergency fiscal bill" to the National Assembly for consideration within the next two weeks, according to Zacch Adedeji, Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS). Mr Adedeji revealed this information on Wednesday while defending the Service's budget before the House Representatives Committee on Finance.
The FIRS chief explained that the bill aims to provide clarity on the president's fiscal direction amidst the current economic hardship the country is grappling with. He stated that the bill is awaiting approval from the Federal Executive Council and will be transmitted to the National Assembly once approved in the next couple of days.
While Mr Adedeji did not disclose the content of the bill, he stated that Finance Minister Wale Edun will engage with lawmakers to discuss its content before it is presented to the National Assembly. He said, “If not for change, I know one should have come yesterday. It was listed at FEC. Hopefully, we will have the first one that we will label an ‘emergency bill’ that addresses those critical issues.”
Nigeria is currently facing a challenging macroeconomic environment, marked by inflationary pressure, foreign exchange volatility, and a food crisis. In recent months, Central Bank Governor Yemi Cardoso has been notably active in addressing the monetary aspects of the crisis, while the fiscal front has remained relatively quiet. This hardship has triggered protests in some parts of the country, with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) holding nationwide protests over economic hardship on Tuesday.
In discussing fiscal reforms, Mr Adedeji urged lawmakers to support the harmonisation of the federal government’s revenue collection system. He argued that agencies such as the Nigeria Customs Service and others should not be involved in revenue collection. According to him, Nigeria needs a single revenue collection platform, similar to those seen in other jurisdictions like the UK and South Africa.
He stated, “What we see is that in other climes, you have single revenue-collecting agency. But here in Nigeria, we have more than 62 agencies collecting one way or the other on behalf of the federal government... Revenue is not a core mandate of customs... That is part of the issues I have with the tax credit. It is not the duty of FIRS to be approving money for the road; it is the duty of the Ministry of Works.”
Meanwhile, the committee also approved the sum of N446.34 billion for the 2024 budget of the agency. The budget estimate comprises N177.44 billion as personnel cost; N156.45 billion as overhead cost, and N112.45 billion as capital.