By Bimbola Oyesola, [email protected]
With the biting inflation and increase in the cost of living, Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) has charged the Federal Government to grant tax exemption to Nigerian workers both in the public and private sectors, moreso as it recently did for some companies in Nigeria.
The union is equally demanding a 100 percent increase on the salary of its members to take them out of poverty.
The union in a communique at the end of its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held in Abuja and signed by the President, Dr. Makolo Hassan and General Secretary, Peters Adeyemi, said the call for tax exemption was informed by the government’s recent action writing-off taxes of large companies operating in the country.
The union said, “NEC-in-Session noted with utmost dismay, the recent reports in the media that the Federal Government of Nigeria has written-off as tax reliefs and concessions to large companies doing business in Nigeria between 2019 and 2021, a mind-boggling sum of money totalling N16.76 trillion that should have accrued to the Federal Government in revenue.
“NEC noted with sadness that the Nigerian workers who are the ones that should benefit from tax concessions are the only ones bearing the burden of taxation in the country.”
The union’s leadership said high personal income tax regimes have made it impossible for majority of workers to live on their salaries as their disposable incomes have been seriously degraded below the poverty line.
“NEC therefore called on the Federal Government to grant tax concessions and exemptions to all Nigerian workers both in the public and private sectors to enable them live decent lives,” the communique read.
The union expressed great concern over the recently released cost of living statistics by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBC) which put the inflation rate in Nigeria at 20.8%, the highest in 17 years.
Lamenting that majority of NASU members are living below the poverty line as a result of high inflation, high cost of food items, transportation as well as cost of goods and services, the leadership demanded for cost of living adjustment of NASU members’ salaries by 100% to take them out of the poverty line and improve their disposable income which can no longer cope with the current reality of inflation in Nigeria.
The workers maintained that Nigeria’s economy is struggling under the weight of a double-digit inflation, oil theft, import-driven economy, soaring exchange rate, rising debt profile and fraudulent tax exemptions and concessions among others.
It maintained that increase in prices of goods and services due to high inflation rate has further pushed Nigerian masses into abject poverty.
It added that contrary to the figures and numbers making the rounds in a bid by the federal government to reassure Nigerians, the reality on ground and economic growth indicators portend danger for the nation’s economy.
“NEC resolved that the solutions to these economic challenges are good governance, accountability, transparency and credibility in the Management of the nation’s resources.
“NEC therefore called on the Government to do the needful and make life better for every Nigerian by providing better public utility, good public services, employment as well as security of lives and property,” the communique said.
The union however expressed its dissatisfaction with IPPIS, noting that the scheme has not lived up to the task as it is full of shortcomings, loopholes and fraud.
It charged the federal government to do the necessary review of IPPIS aimed at resolving the noticeable challenges or in the alternative, adopt the University Peculiar Personnel and Payroll System (U3PS) which has been tested and found to be a better option.