Apparently embarrassed by several news reports that the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee was proposing a further hike of the Value Added Tax (VAT) from the current 7.5% to 10%, the committee’s chairman, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, has debunked the reports, saying that the position of the committee is contrary to the information being insinuated by the media.
Scores of newspapers and online media had on Tuesday reported that committee was considering a legislative proposal to the National Assembly for the purposes of increasing the Value Added Tax (VAT) rate from the current 7.5% to 10%.
Specifically, the news reports quoted Oyedele as making the disclosure when he appeared in Channels Television’s programme ‘Politics Today’.
He reportedly said: “The law we are proposing to the National Assembly includes an increase in the VAT rate from 7.5 percent to 10 percent, starting from 2025. However, we are uncertain about how quickly the law will be passed. The proposal also outlines subsequent increases and the specific years they will take effect.”
However, in his quick rebuttal of the circulating news, the tax expert said the committee was aware that Nigerians were going through fiscal burdens and that its plan is to ease the burden, particularly the VAT burden on the poorest people.
He pointed out that the VAT system was placing too much burden on the poorest people and that the committee had decided that many food items should not just be exempted, but should be zero rated.
In his statement, on his X handle, he regretted that the news reports were contrary to what he said during the interview and contradicted the stance of the committee on its current fiscal reforms initiatives.
Oyedele clarified: “The same interview, very different reportage and choices of headlines. Bad news sells faster, so some journalists will spin any news just to sell. Some of the quotes attributed to me in some of the reports are not my words.
“My committee’s proposal for VAT is to reduce the rate to zero percent (0%) for food, health, education, and exemption for rent, transportation, and small businesses.
“Our data shows that these are the areas where the average person spends almost all their income, meaning their VAT burden will reduce. The upward rate adjustment is on other items to partly offset the reduction in rate and exemption for basic consumptions ensuring that the masses are protected”, he maintained.
