Economic group urges National Assembly to pass tax crime bill

The Association of Concerned Citizens of Nigeria on Revenue and Economy (ACCNRE) has called on the National Assembly to pass the Tax Crime Commission Bill before it.

The bill seeks the establishment of a National Inspector General for Tax Crime Commission (NIGTCC).

The body said if the recommendations and the strategic framework in the bill could be implemented, Nigeria would witness a tremendous inflow of tax revenue of more than 30 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

The national coordinator of ACCNRE, Orji Orji, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja while briefing journalists at the National Assembly.

“No one likes to pay tax, neither does government wants to impose it on its citizens, but no nation can exist without tax,” Mr Orji said.

The ACCNRE leader said there was a need for the government to take the responsibility of fashioning a fair, efficient and transparent taxation system.

Mr Orji said the system should be able to guarantee the security and the protection of the taxpayer’s rights.

He added that the bane remained a system failure in the nation’s economic management, caused by the inefficient and infective taxation system it has operated.

Mr Orji said if established, the NIGTCC would provide policy direction, conduct, supervise, and coordinate audits and investigations related to Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) programmes and operations.

He said it would also review existing and proposed legislation and regulations relating to FIRS programmes and operations and make recommendations concerning the impact of such legislation in the administration of the tax laws.

He said it would inform the auditor-general and the legislature of identified problems and deficiencies and the steps taken to resolve them.