Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Management, Mr. Adeleke Adewolu has described taxation as a veritable tool for economic development, stressing that multiple taxation is an impediment to economic development.
He added that multiple taxation has continue to prove to be a bane on economic development in the Nigeria.
Adewolu spoke at the NCC regional workshop with Industry Stakeholders held recently in Ibadan.
The workshop was hosted specifically for senior government functionaries from all the States in the South West geo-political zone, in order to build better understanding on how cancerous and harmful the issue of multiple taxations and regulations being imposed on the telecom companies by the states and their agencies and agents can be to the country’s development.
He corrected some misconception about taxation, particularly the misguided notion that it is a penal tool on thriving business enterprise.
He said “Taxation is the backbone for public finance. It provides guaranteed and sustainable sources of funding for social programs and public investments, it also serves as a tool curated by the government to effectively and efficiently distribute our commonwealth”.
“Taxation is the backbone for public finance. It provides guaranteed and sustainable sources of funding for social programs and public investments, it also serves as a tool curated by the government to effectively and efficiently distribute our commonwealth”.
He however recalled that the National Tax Policy 2017 emphasized the need to eradicate multiple taxation at all tiers of government. “Specifically, the Policy states that taxes similar to those being collected by a level of Government should not be introduced by the same or another level of Government”.
He noted that while a level of multiplicity is expected in federal system of governance, the levying of a particular tax on the same person or entity, in respect of the same liability by more than one state or local government council should be avoided.
He continued: “The paradox of multiple taxation is that it does not lead to an increment in government revenue, rather the crippling effect of these taxes, is that it makes otherwise profitable businesses, unprofitable. It negatively impacts the ease of doing business, shrinks the tax base, incentivizes tax evasion and complicate tax compliance”.
Consequently, the executive commissioner said supporting the tax initiatives by the various tiers of government includes indicating where a category of taxes have become cancerous to economic development.
