The Western Region Organization (WRO), a global movement advocating for a return to regional governance in Nigeria, has urged the National Assembly to transfer the authority to collect Value Added Tax (VAT) exclusively to states.
In its statement, the WRO urged lawmakers to amend the tax reform bills to allow states to collect and utilize VAT generated within their territories.
According to Mr. Banji Ayiloge, the Executive Director of the organization, such amendments would ensure that the tax reform bills are fair and align with the principles of a true federal system.
“WRO strongly believes that Value-added taxes ought to be in the purview of the states, and the states need the tax to raise significant revenue to develop their areas.
“We frown at the federal government mopping up VAT funds from the states and redistributing them, an act that is not federalism in any fashion but unbridled state socialism, which seeks equality by creating an unequal distribution of resources, which ultimately rewards visionless leaders in some states.
“This is patently unacceptable because it lacks vision and offends the principle of fairness and justice,” the group said.
Ayiloge said that such an amendment and its speedy passage would ensure equity and justice in the nation’s tax system and enable states to use VAT to spur development in their respective domains.
