Tax Bills: No plans to use Alpha Beta to collect revenue— Oyedele

The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, has dismissed speculations that the federal government may outsource revenue collection to Alpha Beta, a firm allegedly linked to President Bola Tinubu.

Mr Oyedele spoke on Monday at a town hall meeting on the Tax Reform Bills organised by Channels TV.

Alpha-Beta is a consulting firm responsible for the computation, tracking, and reconciliation of internally generated revenue (IGR) in Lagos State, in return for a commission.

While responding to a question about concerns over the possible outsourcing of revenue collection to Alpha-Beta or any other consultants, Mr Oyedele insisted that there is no such plan.

“In fact, we had a very interesting debate at the committee level. I wanted to include a clause in the law that says no government should use a consultant to collect tax. We believe that this is one of the biggest problems in our economy today,” he said.

“So, I can confirm to you 100 per cent that there is no plan whatsoever to use consultants for any of this,” he added.

The four bills—the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill—currently before the National Assembly, have generated controversy since their introduction.

Some leaders from the North have openly opposed them. The National Economic Council (NEC) asked President to withdraw the bills and engage in more consultations.

Governors didn’t have time for us

Responding to a question about complaints by some governors that they were not adequately consulted, Mr Oyedele refuted the claims, narrating how they did not make time for them when the committee visited.

“This is not rushed at all. We consulted. We had one session with the governors’ forum. We consulted the governors. They won’t say we didn’t consult them. What they are saying is that we need to consult more, which we agree with, because consultation never ends. Even after passing the bills, you must continue to consult.

“Some of them did not have time for us. For those who did, we appreciate the governor of Lagos. He said, ‘You know what, let’s even set up a committee between my cabinet and your team to work through the details.’ We worked for more than six months,” he added.

The four bills have passed the second reading in the Senate and are expected to be debated soon in the House of Representatives.