Ex-Niger governor lambastes opposition to Tax Reform Bill

From Molly Kilete, Abuja

Former chairman of the Northern Governors Forum (NGF), Babangida Aliyu, has condemned those opposing the Tax Reform Bills of the federal government, saying they have not taken their time to study the bill.

The ex-governor, who made this known at the graduation ceremony for the Executive Intelligence Management Course 17 at the National Institute for Security Studies in Abuja, equally criticised the government for what he described as poor communication about the policy to the populace.

He said Nigerians need to understand that no policy benefits everyone equally. The Tax Reform Bills, namely the Joint Revenue Board of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill, 2024, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, 2024, and the Nigeria Tax Bill, 2024, have sparked widespread condemnation and debate since their introduction to the National Assembly.

He said, “I was speaking to the NSA when we were in the common room, and I said to him, look, many of the people debating the tax bill have not read it. But again, there is the problem of communication. The government should speak more so when the majority of the people are not literate. You should be the first to speak on any major policy, particularly a policy that will bring changes so that the people can understand.

“People can know that there is no policy that will come to somebody; if the majority comes and one person is disturbed, you can only tell him. But you cannot say because of one person, the policy cannot be taken. So communication is very, very important.”

Speaking at the graduation ceremony, Vice President Kashim Shettima, while noting the evolving nature of global threats, including cyber warfare and disinformation, called for innovative responses and a redefinition of security paradigms. He urged the graduands to transform crises into opportunities for stability and growth, describing the current era as standing “at the confluence of opportunities and vulnerabilities.”

Shettima, represented by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, while noting that technology must serve as a tool for progress and not a weapon of destruction, said security issues we face—from terrorism and transnational crime to climate migration and cyber warfare—transcend borders. He said, “Your journey through this institution has equipped you not only to defend but to build alliances that honour our shared humanity. Learning is the gateway to finding lasting solutions to complex problems.

“Our world shrinks every day, and no challenge in one nation can be isolated from others. The social and economic tensions we must douse as leaders cannot be addressed with archaic ideas.”