Category: The Nation – Nigeria

The Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, has disclosed that nearly 70 percent of funds shared at monthly Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meetings now come from taxes collected by the agency.

Adedeji disclosed this in an interview marking his two years in office, where he said the surge in tax revenue has strengthened fiscal stability across the country.

According to him, improved collections have enabled 30 states to repay N1.85 trillion in debts within the past 18 months.

‘Debt servicing costs that once consumed 90 per cent of government revenue have now dropped to about 50 per cent. External reserves have also grown on the back of stronger fiscal stability,’ he said.

The FIRS boss praised President Bola Tinubu’s administration for creating a tax environment that eases compliance.

‘The president has fulfilled his campaign promise to simplify tax compliance and remove hurdles faced by taxpayers,’ Adedeji noted.

Adedeji explained that the government’s tax reforms-the most far-reaching since independence-are designed to reduce the burden on citizens while improving government revenue. He pointed out that food, education, shared transportation, and agriculture have been exempted from value-added tax (VAT).

‘The reforms are already yielding results. Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio has risen from 10 per cent to 13.5 per cent in just two years, with a target of 18 per cent by 2027. In August alone, the federation account disbursed a record N2 trillion,’ he stated.

The FIRS chairman admitted that the transition has not been without difficulties. ‘It is like the pain of a woman in labour,’ he said, while stressing that government interventions are already helping to cushion the effects. These include the rollout of compressed natural gas (CNG) buses and crude-for-naira support for local refiners, which he said are already reflected in fuel prices.

Adedeji outlined how the new consolidated tax law strengthens compliance by restructuring FIRS operations. Taxpayers are now segmented into small, medium, and large categories, with one-stop shops created to ease filing and payments.

‘We are service providers to taxpayers rather than just an enforcement agency,’ he explained. ‘When companies are doing well, expanding, and making profits, we will benefit from their growth. Our task is to remove hurdles in their way, and that is what the president has done with these new laws.’

He also clarified the decision to rename the FIRS as the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS). ‘The word ‘federal’ gave the wrong impression that we only collect for the federal government. In reality, we collect VAT, of which 90 per cent belongs to the states,’ he said.

On the controversial petrol surcharge included in the new law, Adedeji assured that it would not apply automatically. ‘It will only take effect if activated by a ministerial order and published in the official gazette,’ he noted.

Adedeji said the consolidation of multiple tax laws into a single code-set to take effect in January-will simplify Nigeria’s tax system. The new framework reduces the number of tax types to single digits, eliminates tax for businesses with annual turnover below N50 million, and adjusts personal income tax thresholds to shield low-income earners.

On June 26, 2025, President Tinubu signed into law four major bills: the Nigeria Tax Act, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Act, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Act. The laws aim to broaden the tax base, improve compliance, and enhance transparency across all tiers of government.

Adedeji further linked Nigeria’s fiscal improvement to Tinubu’s wider economic reforms. ‘The health of the federation account has blossomed greatly, as there are no bogus subsidy claims to deplete the pool,’ he said, referring to the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of exchange rates.

At 65 years of Independence, Nigerians, surely have a tough decision to make. Will the majority go on with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s (PBAT) administration’s far-reaching reforms or will they turn to those making a swansong of the challenges associated with the reforms? Historically, reformers like Mikhail Gorbachev of Soviet Union paid a huge price for his Perestroika and Glasnost. Will PBAT pay the price for being a reformer or will he survive?

Nigeria’s economic challenges have been systemic, ranging from inflation, import dependency, foreign exchange crisis, erosion of the value of the local currency, food insecurity, hunger, to abject poverty of the majority of the citizens. Amidst these economic headwinds, Nigerians were literally subsidizing the fuel imports of her neighbours. To compound the situation, her rapacious elites were trading on her currency to the detriment of businesses and other genuine economic activities.

The implication was that while the few elites connected to the seat of power, were making millions by getting direct foreign currency allocations from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and trading on it, those engaged in genuine economic activities were substantially at the mercy of the ravenous economic saboteurs. The most impactful on the country was sourcing foreign exchange for the importation of fuel, as the three major refineries in Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna were comatose.

The way out for the immediate past regime, was printing more money by the CBN, euphemistically referred by government officials, as ‘ways and means’. The challenge of sourcing foreign exchange to import fuel was further compounded by the opacity and massive corruption of the process. Nigeria experienced all manner of racketeering, as many so-called fuel importers presented fake documents for non-existent imports, and with the connivance of corrupt state officials got paid humongous sums to the detriment of the already bleeding foreign exchange reserves.

Other businesses, like foreign airline operators, who after collecting the cost of tickets in local currency could not buy foreign exchange at the official foreign exchange rate to repatriate their earnings, either departed the country, or took matters into their own hands. Those that stayed, charged much higher for tickets sold in Nigeria, when compared to prices for similar tickets in neighbouring countries. Travels for students, businessmen and holiday makers became so excruciating that Nigerians went to neighbouring countries to connect Europe and America at huge costs.

Many multi-national manufacturing companies, finding it difficult to access foreign exchange to import needed raw materials, closed shop, and moved to more economically stable countries. As unemployment skyrocketed, and more valueless money chased fewer goods, inflation soared into triple digits, and the national economy was on a tailspin. The impact on food inflation was so devastating that basic essential commodities, some of which were import dependent, were priced out of the reach of the ordinary Nigerians and the country was almost imploding.

The insecurity in parts of the country further drove food prices to a dangerous level. With the north-central states of Benue and Plateau, major food baskets of the country overrun by murderous herdsmen, Nigeria was on the throes of asphyxiation. While the north-central was on the boil, farmlands further north were the grains come from, were in the grips of internecine war, waged by Boko Haram and the so-called bandits. While Boko Haram elements were fighting for their lives in northeast, the bandits were claiming territories in northwest.

On assumption of office in May, 2023, the PBAT administration decided to confront the twin challenge of fuel subsidy and foreign exchange racketeering. The immediate impact was a runaway inflation and further depreciation of the official rate of the Naira, which had been artificially buoyed over the years by the CBN. Many commentators viewed the twin steps as bold, while some considered it reckless. Those who supported the twin policy of the administration argued that it was the only way to bring sanity to the national economy.

Initially, the side effects of the twin policy were so devastating, as the nation witnessed galloping inflation, especially food inflation that even the core supporters of the administration doubted the wisdom of the policies. But the administration stayed course, and presently while Naira is gaining value by the day, inflation is tending downwards. The removal of the subsidy also made the nation buoyant enough to increase the minimum wage and for sub-nationals to have money to engage in infrastructural projects.

The implicit deregulation of the price of fuel has seen the price of that national economic driver now determined by marketers. Recently, the price of fuel has been moving up and down without Nigerians and especially labour unions pointing fingers and threatening the industrial peace of the country. Luckily for the Tinubu administration and indeed for Nigerians, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals came on stream to fill the huge gap left by the bumbling and incompetent Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL).

But at the cusp of Nigeria’s 65th anniversary, the apparent redundancy that private sector-led Dangote has made of the two major industrial unions hegemons in the oil sector, NUPENG and PENGASSAN, rears its ugly or beautiful head, depending on which side, the commentator belongs. The two industrial unions were made nationally popular during the war for democracy in Nigeria, after the annulment of June 12 general election, which Chief M.K.O Abiola won, particularly under the leadership of late Chief Frank Kokori of NUPENG.

But like NNPCL, the two unions appear to have fallen into disuse with the private sector dominating the downstream oil sector. Considering the alleged underhand tactics of the leaders of the union to make themselves wealthy at a huge price to ordinary Nigerians, the two unions have a herculean task to convince Nigerians that their ongoing tango with Dangote Refinery is not for private gain. Unfortunately for them, their relatively recent antecedent with respect to the federal government’s sale and repurchase of the three earlier named refineries makes them complicit in the economic sabotage of the oil industry in recent decades.

While it would be unfair for Dangote Refinery to deny workers their rights under section 40 of the 1999 constitution (as amended), to belong to Trade Unions; the arbitrary, unconscionable and buccaneer trade practices of NUPENG and PENGASSAN, cannot cohabit with private capital, without their internal reforms. Of note, most of their officials live like oil Sheiks, from illegal dues, and the fallout of those practices, is on the ordinary Nigerians. As the country celebrate her anniversary, this column wonders which way Nigerians will go?

Will Nigerians follow through with the Tinubu reforms, or will they fall for the antics of the rapacious elites mocking the ordinary citizens with their new swan song of ‘I am hungry’, when the humongous wealth the cheerleaders display, are far beyond what they could have gotten from their honest labour?

Former British diplomat Mr David Roberts has joined forces with the Federal Government to dismiss the reports of genocide against Christians in the country as false.

Roberts, who served for many years as a director of the British Council in Abuja, stated that the country’s security challenges had been exaggerated by Western interest groups and the media.

He warned against escalating the situation with such inaccurate reports.

In a statement, Roberts said: ‘Yes, there are security challenges in Nigeria, but those issues have affected the country from the pre-colonial, colonial, and now the post-colonial periods,’ he stated, adding, ‘Ample evidence exists to show that the Nigerian government is de-escalating the violence.’

Based on a viral video in which a man with a Nigerian accent claimed that over 500,000 Christians were killed in the country last year, Mr Bill Maher, a comedian who hosts the longest-running talk show in the US, Real Time with Bill Maher, asserted that a systematic genocide was happening in Nigeria.

The offensive video was circulated by international X influencers, including Radio Genoa, an anti-Islamic personality, who stokes negative sentiments against the Muslim faith.

However, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mr Mohammed Idris, and a former presidential aide, Mr Reno Omokri, on Sunday refuted the claims as false.

Roberts upheld Idris’ and Omokri’s rebuttals and contended that the genocide reports were skewed. He explained that both the Christian and Muslim faiths are victims of the age-long violence.

He stated: ‘I lived in Nigeria as a British diplomat and toured the entire country. It is ridiculous for anyone even to suggest that half a million people were killed as part of a genocide against Christians in Nigeria by Muslims last year alone. ‘

‘And this is not just some Christian genocide. In fact, more Muslims are killed in these attacks in Nigeria than Christians – a fact highlighted by the Institute for Economics and Peace in their annual Global Terrorism Index.’

The former diplomat explained that insecurity in Nigeria had worsened due to the crisis in the Sahel, with the fall of democratic governments in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

According to Roberts, ‘As these countries typically share a border with the Northwest and Northeast of Nigeria, which are the Islamic heartlands, it has meant that Muslims have borne the brunt of the situation more than Christians, which is not to say Christians are not affected.’

He urged Western nations and their media to be mindful of the reportage in order not to ignite a crisis that will result in a greater flood of refugees from West Africa turning up in Europe through the Mediterranean.

Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), the world’s largest professional body of management accountants, has awarded 235 accounting and finance professionals in Nigeria Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) certificates, and their CGMA designation at its 2025 convocation in Lagos.

CIMA training, which is recognised in over 170 countries, equips candidates with accounting knowledge, risk management, business leadership, decision-making, performance evaluation, and financial analysis. The 235 candidates will also benefit from the large global community of CGMA holders, granting them access to a global network of business and finance leaders as well as providing them with career support and continuous professional development.

Tariro Mutizwa, vice president Africa, lauded the candidates for their hard work, dedication and commitment in acquiring the knowledge and skills to achieve their CGMA. She assured them that the certification has paved the way for promising careers as they have been equipped to meet not only today’s business demands but also future business needs.

‘I am pleased to welcome a new generation of Nigerian accounting and finance professionals into our profession in Nigeria. Their dedication, hard work, and unrelenting commitment have paved the way for promising careers built on a solid foundation of knowledge and skill,’ Mutizwa said. ‘These future leaders are equipped not only to meet the demands of today’s business landscape but to shape what comes next, driving innovation, integrity, and excellence in their organisations. May their journey be marked by growth, impact, and success.’

Ijeoma Anadozie, Country Director in Nigeria, also praised the candidates. The country director said the certification has positioned the candidates to seize a world of exciting opportunities.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has given the Federal Government a 14-day ultimatum to address its seven-point demands or face an industrial action.

The union said it reached the decision at its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Sunday at the University of Abuja.

ASUU’s National President, Prof. Chris Piwuna, announced the strike notice while addressing reporters yesterday in Abuja.

He said: ‘At the NEC meeting held on September 28, 2025, at the University of Abuja, the union decried the neglect of the university system and the government’s consistent refusal to meet its demands. ‘Accordingly, ASUU has given the Federal Government of Nigeria an ultimatum of fourteen (14) days within which to address these issues.

‘If at the end of the ultimatum the government fails to act, the union may have no option but to first embark on a two-week warning strike, and thereafter, a total and indefinite strike.’

The Federal Ministry of Education recently set up a committee, chaired by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Abel Enitan, to review ASUU’s proposals in a bid to restore stability in the university system.

But the committee has yet to make its recommendations public.

Also, in an interview with The Nation, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, had said there was no need for the union to embark on a strike in the middle of ongoing talks.

Alausa had appealed to the university lecturers to be patient with the outcome of the committee’s assignment, which is expected to address the issues raised by ASUU.

A civil society coalition, the Alliance for Energy Stability and Economic Growth (AESEG), has urged Nigerians to support President Bola Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid, noting that his administration has restored investor confidence in the oil and gas sector.

In a statement on Monday, AESEG President Dr. Suleiman Garba Danladi said the recent approval for Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPco) and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited (NAE) to acquire TotalEnergies’ 12.5 per cent stake in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 118 highlights renewed trust by international oil companies in Nigeria’s regulatory framework under Tinubu’s leadership.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) confirmed that Shell purchased 10 per cent of the asset for $408 million, while Agip acquired 2.5 per cent for $102 million.

The approval, granted under Section 95 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, followed a rigorous due diligence process confirming the firms’ technical competence, financial strength, and managerial capacity to sustain deepwater operations in the Bonga field.

Dr. Danladi said such transactions were not only reshaping Nigeria’s energy landscape but also strengthening the country’s economic base.

‘President Tinubu’s reforms in the oil and gas industry have shown clear results. Today, we see Shell consolidating its stake in Nigeria’s deepwater, we see Agip reaffirming its commitments, and we see a regulator that is firm in protecting government interests. This is the kind of progress that only continuity in leadership can sustain,’ he said.

The group recalled that only last week, the NUPRC revoked an $860 million deal involving TotalEnergies and Mauritius-based Chappal Energies for failure to meet financial obligations.

According to AESEG, this underscores the regulator’s strengthened resolve to enforce accountability, a move the group credited to Tinubu’s ‘decisive political will to reposition the sector.’

‘With these bold steps, Nigeria is no longer seen as a playground for speculative investors. Instead, serious players with track records of performance are being encouraged. This has positive implications for revenue, jobs, and energy security,’ the statement added.

Dr. Danladi also pointed out that the Bonga oilfield, Nigeria’s first deepwater project, remains a strategic contributor to the country’s crude output and foreign exchange earnings.

‘By ensuring the continuity of such assets in the hands of experienced operators, Nigeria is laying the foundation for production stability and gradual recovery to the 2 million barrels per day mark,’ he said.

The group further argued that Nigeria’s oil and gas industry is entering a period of ‘delicate balance’ as IOCs divest from onshore operations while strengthening deepwater investments.

‘Only a steady hand at the helm of government, backed by political stability, can guarantee that Nigeria reaps the full benefits of this transition. We therefore urge Nigerians to support President Tinubu’s re-election in 2027,’ the statement said.

AESEG concluded by warning that reversing course in leadership could shake investor confidence.

‘The oil majors are watching Nigeria closely. They are reassured by the current pace of reforms, but they also value predictability. Changing direction in 2027 could disrupt the gains we are seeing today,’ Dr. Danladi added.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will tomorrow (Wednesday) deliver a nationwide broadcast to mark Nigeria’s 65th Independence Anniversary.

According to a statement on Tuesday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the broadcast will go live by 7:00 am on October 1, 2025.

All television and radio stations as well as other electronic media platforms, have been directed to hook up to the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) for the presidential address.

‘President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will broadcast to the nation on Wednesday, October 1, 2025, at 7 a.m., in commemoration of Nigeria’s 65th Independence anniversary.

‘All television, radio stations, and other electronic media outlets are urged to join the network services of the Nigerian Television Authority and the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria for the broadcast,’ the statement reads.

Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) didn’t disarm vigilantes in Oke-Ode, a town in Ifelodun Local Government Area, Kwara State Government has stated.

Gunmen on Sunday reportedly killed 12 and abducted an unspecified people with several others injured in the deadly incident.

In a viral video that trailed the attack, a lady who appeared distressed, was seen mourning her dead husband and brother.

She accused the DSS of disarming the town’s vigilantes prior to the attack, a move she claimed, gave the assailants undue firepower advantage.

However, the State Government, in a statement, described the claim as false, saying at no time did the DSS disarm vigilantes in any part of the state.

‘There is no truth to the claim that DSS withdrew weapons from the forest guards at any time. The leadership of the forest guards has disputed this claim,’ Rafiu Akakaye, who is Chief Press Secretary to Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq, said in a statement on Tuesday.

The statement came on a day the DSS and troops of the Nigerian Army eliminated several terrorists on the border between Kwara and Kogi States. According to top security sources, notable among those killed was a terrorist kingpin called Maiwada and several foot soldiers of his.

Kwara State Government regretted that security agencies in the state have ‘expressed strong reservations about the demoralising, albeit false, claim which was made in a viral video.

‘We pray to God to console the bereaved woman- and every other one – but her claim is not true,’ noted the statement, quickly adding, ‘this clarification does not in any way delegitimise her grief.’

Continued the State Government said: ‘Politicians do not miss opportunities to wrong-foot their opponents. Average citizens who are concerned about all of us getting out of this crisis stronger and better as a community should not join such chitchat. It is not worth it.

‘News media (including Sahara Reporters) have used pictures from thousands of kilometers away to illustrate their stories.some have said we are in a state of war. It is their own way of saying it,’ the state government added.

‘We will get out of this stronger and safer,’ assured the government, advising, ‘let us remain united and calm, and refuse to be at daggers-drawn with ourselves.’

Five aspirants contesting for the position of President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) have signed a Peace Accord, pledging to accept the outcome of the forthcoming election.

The accord, signed on Monday at the Ministry of Youth Development in Abuja, is aimed at fostering harmony and ensuring a peaceful atmosphere during the NYCN national elective congress, scheduled for October 5-8, 2025, in Abuja.

Chairman of the NYCN National Transition Committee (NTC), Prince Gbenga Adedamola, who announced a progress report at the ceremony, said the committee has been working closely with the Congress Planning and Electoral Committees to guarantee a credible process.

He noted that the congress, themed ‘Redemption Congress: Repositioning the Youth Council for Greatness,’ marks a fresh chapter in NYCN’s history, following the dissolution of two factional executive councils earlier in August 2025.

The aspirants expressed confidence in the process and reaffirmed their commitment to the unity and progress of the organization.

‘This Congress aims to reposition the NYCN for greater impact and effectiveness in advocating for youth development in Nigeria,’ Adedamola said.

He further explained that the NTC has secured a convenient location in Abuja for the national congress, with adequate security arrangements in place to ensure a smooth and successful event.

‘This development marks a significant milestone in the organisation’s efforts to promote youth development and empowerment in Nigeria.

‘The NYCN leadership expresses heartfelt gratitude to State Chapters and Voluntary Youth Organisations for their unwavering support and dedication, past leaders and stakeholders for their invaluable contributions and guidance, and the Federal Ministry of Youth Development for its supervisory role in ensuring transparency and accountability.

‘These efforts underscore the NYCN’s commitment to promoting youth development and empowerment in Nigeria,’ he added.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed security and law enforcement agencies to fish out those responsible for the killing of Ms. Somtochukwu ‘Sommie’ Maduagwu, a promising news anchor with Arise News Television, who was murdered during a robbery attack at her Katampe residence in Abuja.

In a statement issued on Tuesday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, the President condemned the crime, describing it as ‘cruel and condemnable.’

He tasked investigators to conduct a swift and thorough probe to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice without delay.

‘Security and law enforcement agencies should conduct a quick and thorough investigation into the incident and ensure that the perpetrators are apprehended and brought to justice without delay,’ the President said.

While commiserating with the Maduagwu family, the management and staff of Arise News, and the wider media community, President Tinubu expressed deep sorrow at the loss of the young journalist, whom he described as ‘a promising professional whose life was cut short in a cruel and condemnable manner.’

The President assured Nigerians that his administration remains committed to securing lives and property, noting that additional measures are being strengthened to combat crime in all its forms.

Maduagwu’s death has drawn widespread grief across the media industry, with colleagues and viewers mourning her as one of the brightest talents in television journalism.