Claim
Babagana Zulum, governor of Borno State on Sunday claimed while featuring on a Channels TV programme that the tax reform bills introduced by the federal government have a clause to scrap the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI).
Background
On September 3, President Bola Tinubu transmitted four tax reform bills to the national assembly for consideration following the recommendations of the Taiwo Oyedele-led Presidential Committee on Fiscal and Tax Reforms.
The bills include the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, which aims to provide the legal fiscal framework for taxation in the country, and the Tax Administration Bill, which will provide a clear and concise legal framework for all taxes in the country and reduce disputes.
The proposed Tax Reform Bills have generated a lot of controversies since their introduction at the National Assembly. It has been met with serious resistance, especially from the Northern part of the country.
Last month, the National Economic Council (NEC) had advised President Bola Tinubu to withdraw the bills to allow for further consultations but the president had insisted that the bills should go through the necessary legislative processes.
In the Senate, the bills have passed for a second reading through voice votes while the House of Representatives announced a suspension of discussions on the bills today.
Verification
Considering the weight and importance of the claim, DailyAgent Check conducted searches on the bills and found no section that confirmed the claim.
We also found a video published by Channels TV where Taiwo Oyedele asserted that the claim was a piece of wrong information about the tax reform.
Oyedele also cleared the air on the claims that the governors were not consulted before the bills were forwarded to the legislature for scrutiny and passage. He said that the Committee consulted the governor but they said they want further consultations.
Verdict
The claim is FALSE!
