Taxation: Actionaid demands tax payment by all

Mrs Ene Obi, the CountryDirector of Actionaid, has called on all taxable citizens and corporate bodies to pay their correct taxes to boost national development.

Ene, represented by the Governance Manager, Actionaid, Mr Celestine Odo, made the appeal on Tuesday in Lagos at the opening of a three-day workshop on breaking barriers to education by increasing fair tax revenue in the country.

She said it was fair for everyone to pay their taxes so that inequality does not spiral out of hand in the country.

The country-director said tax revenue remained the most sustainable way to develop the economy and provide adequate public services to Nigerians.

To this end, Obi appealed to workers in the formal and informal sectors, as well as local and foreign companies in the country to pay their fair share of tax.

She said taxation was a powerful tool for redistributing wealth within the society to address poverty and inequality rate.

“A functioning state that can meet the basic needs of its people must rely ultimately on its revenue to meet its development objectives. An effective tax structure can also create incentives to improve governance, strengthen channels of political representations and reducing corruption,’’ she said.

Furthermore, Obi said without increasing tax, the Nigerian government can generate additional tax revenue by blocking leakages and end the regime of granting unnecessary tax incentives to companies and high net-worth individuals.