Mr Abiodun Oke, the chairman of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN), has suggested that Nigeria needs to adopt a sound tax system to attract foreign direct investment and enable the country to attract foreign direct investment during his inauguration in Lagos.
During his inauguration, Oke said, “We desire to have an environment where they would be able to work and bring funds to the country. Recently, we have been talking about the foreign direct investment; it won’t come if we don’t have a standard tax system,”
He advised and suggested updating the Nigerian tax law if it is considered outdated. He said, “Look at laws because they would always tell you what is in the law. And so if the law is archaic, it is no longer up-to-date. We need to find a way to bring them on board.”
Oke pointed out the possibility of attracting foreign investors if tax professionals initiate necessary action and make precise decisions to address multiple taxation.
In his statement, Oke suggested a digitalized tax procedure to ensure every Nigerian and business owner carries out their civil responsibility. Citing an example, Oke said, “A businessman can do billions of naira in business in a year and would come and pay personal income tax, maybe because the person runs an enterprise and because he is not a limited company.”
The digitalized tax procedure will permit close monitoring and ensure everyone pays the correct tax rate.
He further said his administration has taken cognitive actions to improve welfare and human relationships. However, Mr Samuel Agbeluyi, who is a member of the tax reform committee and the President of the CITN, mentioned the committee’s plan to reduce taxes payable in Nigeria to 10 from over 60.
He said, “And I tell you, they are taking it step by step, and from what we are seeing, away from 62 different taxes we pay in Nigeria, we are looking at reducing it to a maximum of 10,”
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