Maianguwa: Decentralisation of VAT Will Breed Imposition of Taxes on Consumers

Igbawase Ukumba in Lafia

The Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Abuja Liaison Office to Governor Abdullahhi Sule of Nasarawa State, Yusuf Jibrin Maianguwa, has cautioned against decentralisation of the Value Added Tax (VAT) administration system in the country warning that doing so will breed imposition of taxes on consumers.

Maianguwa who stated this during an interview with THISDAY, cautioned agitators for the VAT decentralisation to weigh the consequences of their agitation on the final consummers of goods and services in the country.

The Nasarawa governor’s aide, however, attributed the recent clamour for the collection of VAT by some state governments to the enabling environment created by the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration which has flourished business activities in the country in the past six years.

He added that current business activities in the country are good under the watch of President Buhari where people are paying much VAT hence some states became interested in its collection.

He said: “It means President Buhari has performed perfectly well that businesses are flourishing in the country. There is an improved collection of VAT and that is why some people had the guts to go to court because they are collecting the highest amount of VAT.

“Why is it that during the administration of Presidents Umaru Yar’adua and Goodluck Johnathan that no governor threatened litigation over VAT collection? It was because business activities in the country were paralysed.”

He, maintained that the reason for the current jostling for the collection of VAT by some states of the federation was based on the flourishing economy of the country as enabled by President Buhari’s administration.

“Beside that, leakages linked to VAT collection were identified by the present administration and consequently blocked hitherto paving the way for improved volumes of the VAT collections in the country,” Maianguwa concluded.