The Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) has clarified that the tax reforms introduced by the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu are primarily designed to ease the burden on poor and low-income Nigerians.
Speaking in an interview on ARISE Television on Sunday, the Executive Chairman of the NRS, Zacchaeus Adedeji, said the reforms were deliberately structured to protect vulnerable citizens rather than increase their tax obligations.
Adedeji explained that contrary to public misconceptions, the government did not introduce new taxes. Instead, he said the reforms feature extensive exemptions that largely shield low-income earners from paying additional levies.
“The government is not taxing more,” he stated. “When you carefully examine the exemptions, you will find that more than 95 per cent of poor Nigerians are completely exempted.”
He identified the complete removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on basic necessities, particularly food items, as one of the most significant reliefs under the new tax framework. According to him, food accounts for the largest share of spending among poor households.
“Removing VAT entirely from food items works strongly in favour of the poor because nearly 90 per cent of their disposable income is spent on food,” Adedeji said.
The NRS chairman added that transportation, another major cost for low-income Nigerians, was also covered by the exemptions, further reducing financial pressure on vulnerable groups.
“The same applies to transportation, which the poor depend on heavily,” he noted.
Adedeji stressed that when all the reliefs and exemptions are viewed collectively, the overall impact of the tax reforms clearly favours Nigerians at the lower end of the income scale.
“When you consider the total picture and the net benefits, the poor emerge as the biggest beneficiaries of this tax reform,” he said.
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