By Seun Adams
An Executive Bill which seeks to overhaul revenue administration including regulation of the cryptocurrency industry in Nigeria, is being put together for transmission to the National Assembly, Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, has said.
Adedeji, made the disclosure on Saturday at a stakeholders’ engagement with a joint committee of the National Assembly in Lagos.
The Special Adviser on Media to Adedeji, Dare Adekanmbi, quoted the FIRS chairman as saying that the aim of the bill is to, among others, simplify tax laws, harmonise collection of revenue as well as seek the replacement of obsolete tax laws with new ones in line with the current economic realities.
“By the special grace of the Almighty God, we will bring a bill for a law to overhaul the whole process of revenue administration in Nigeria.
“Part of what we intend to achieve with this is to harmonise revenue collection, making tax laws very simple to understand and to be in tune with our current realities.
“For example, the Stamp Duty Act was made in 1939 when there was no Internet connectivity or any of the features of modern society as we have it now. Even in 1939, states and local government councils had not been created.
“So, we need to bring that law up to date. This is one of the reasons President Bola Tinubu set up the Taiwo Oyedele-led Fiscal Policy and Tax Reform Committee to look into all these laws and make recommendations.
“Today, we cannot run away from the cryptocurrency ecosystem because it is the in-thing. But as it stands in Nigeria today, there is no law that regulates cryptocurrency operations. We need a law that regulates that area of our economy. This is why we are having this engagement with the legislators. We will regulate it in a way that is not injurious to the economic development of Nigeria.
“These are some of the things we are bringing together in an Executive Bill to overhaul revenue administration for the development of the country,” the FIRS chairman said.
On the revenue target of N19.4 trillion set for FIRS in 2024, Adedeji said the revenue-collection agency is on course to achieve the target
“We set a target of N19.4 trillion for ourselves. We are almost in the third quarter of the year and with the figures we are seeing so far, I can say we are on the path of achieving our target,” he said.
Commending FIRS for organising the stakeholders’ meeting, chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Senator Sani Musa, opined that FIRS should be the regulating and collecting agency for all taxes for the Federation, noting that the National Single Window programme will address the inefficiency in revenue collection in the country.
“This is another opportunity for us as lawmakers to listen, learn and contribute on how best to support the FIRS to achieve its target. It is also an opportunity for FIRS to share its challenges, successes and strategies for the future.
“By working together, we can ensure that FIRS is fully equipped to maximise not only collection but also provide the needed resources for national development and public welfare,” Musa said.
His counterpart in the House of Representatives, Mr. James Faleke, who was represented by Kalejaiye Paul, commended the Adedeji’s leadership style at FIRS.
