President Muhammadu Buhari has been urged to stop the imposition of six percent stamp duty tax on tenants immediately.
This is another burden that will further impoverish the Nigerian masses and make life unbearable for them, he warned.
This call was made by Chief Adesunbo Onitiri, a renowned socio-political activist and critic, in a Press statement in Lagos yesterday.
Chief Onitiri noted that the people are already saddled with heavy taxes, thus weighing down the Nigerian people.
“Fuel pump price had been illegally increased from N123/ litre to N143.8/ litre. This has increased the cost of transportation and food stuff which had created a big hole in the pockets of our people.
“Instead of turning the people to government punching bag, please cut down the humongous cost of Governance and fight the reckless corruption in high places.
“The N870B school feeding scam and N85B fraud in NDDC are classical examples, just to mention a few,” Chief Onitiri stressed
Chief Onitiri pointed out that the people cannot be held responsible for the reckless fraud and incompetence in government.
According to Onitiri, it is the duty of government to serve the people with dividends of democracy and not to impoverish them.
“It is a pity that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) that is supposed to protect the interest of the people and other Human Rights organisations have been heavily compromised.
“Besides, the fighting spirit of the masses have been eroded by poverty. This does not mean that the government should continue to turn Nigerians into weeping, helpless people and punching bag.
“The take-home pay of most Nigerians have not been increased and their purchasing power has been eroded. The minimum wage has not been successfully implemented by most state government”, the social critic lamented.
He warned that Nigeria is fast becoming the world’s poorest capital. Hardly can our people feed once a day.
Onitiri reminded Buhari that the campaign promise of APC government to remove 10million people from poverty level annually has been shattered, instead ten million people are taken below poverty level every year.
It was Onitiri’s belief that the direct consequence of this imposition of stamp duty tax will increase cost of accommodation, which will make many people lose their houses and thus throw many Nigerians into the streets.
“When we have many homeless people, violent crimes will increase, insecurity will be fuelled, and many able hands available to Boko Haram and other terrorists groups.
“The timing of introduction of this tax is very wrong when the Covid 19 pandemic has wrecked havoc on our economy.
“When many responsible governments all over the world are dishing out palliatives to their people including payment of house rents.
“Is this the palliative treatment our government deems appropriate to give Nigerians when most families have not benefited from the trillions of naira already allegedly spent on palliative measures.
“This is too unfair and wickedness on our people”,Chief Onitiri added.
