Senate President Ahmad Lawan says the upper legislative
chamber will turn the heat on various revenue generating agencies for adequate
revenue to fund implementation of the N21.83 trillion 2023 budget.
The federal government has proposed to borrow to finance the
N11.34 trillion 2023 budget deficit.
Last year, President Muhammadu Buhari had also said the
country’s poor performance in resource mobilisation was a source of concern, as
“tax revenues are approximately 8 percent of our output”.
Speaking to journalists on Thursday in Abuja at his 64th birthday celebration, Lawan said the government cannot continue to borrow on a yearly basis to fund the budget because it was unsustainable.
Proffering ideas on how borrowing could be drastically
reduced, he said the upper chamber would, before its dissolution, engage the
ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of the government on ways to
improve their revenue generation duties.
“In looking inward, the senate and by extension, the
national assembly will turn the heat on various revenue generating agencies
through relevant committees for optimal performance as far as revenue
generation is concerned,” Lawan explained.
”The committees, through oversight functions, will ensure
that each of the revenue generating agency, remit every kobo generated into the
national coffers.”
Lawan also said the government would review the processes of
granting corporate tax holidays, import duty waivers and concessions to
investors and businesses.
He explained that most of the waivers and concessions needed
to be reviewed to generate more money into government coffers and minimise
borrowing.
“Enormous revenue being lost through tax waivers will also
be looked into in terms of reviewing the policy or calling for its revocation,”
Lawan said.
“Most of what we do in terms of national development is in
health, borders insecurity I think we have to work hard to improve revenue
generation, collection because it is not looking too sustainable that we
tolerate people, some agencies of government to misapply or not even declare
the revenue they collect.
“We can’t continue
with that. So, for us at the senate we have decided that for the remaining
part, we will continue to engage revenue generating agencies until we get
better outcomes from them.
“We will review the waivers. Where the waivers cannot be
sustained anymore, such waivers should be reversed or renegotiated, but
definitely we need to work hard to improve revenue generation of the nation by
the MDAS and other government agencies.”
The senate president added that Nigeria had no reason to be
poor to the scaring level of having 133 million of her citizens living below
the poverty level as recently declared by the National Bureau of Statistics.
“Incidentally, the poorest states are in the zone naturally
gifted with N33tn worth livestock farming but refused to be supported by
government over the decades by categorising it as an individual business,” he
said.
According to Lawan, if the federal government diversifies
into areas like livestock, which has N33 trillion potential investment, the
disturbing poverty level will change to prosperity.
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