Increasing Revenue, Wasteful Spending

The six months target hit by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has resulted in more posers for the Goodluck Jonathan administration, writes EROMOSELE EBHOMELE


President Goodluck Jonathan

It was with excitement that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) announced, few weeks ago, that it had realised N2.43 trillion as tax revenue in the first half of the year. This showed an increase of N499.20 billion against the N1.94 trillion realised in the same period last year.
While giving a breakdown of the revenue generated, the FIRS had told Nigerians that of the realised amount, non-oil tax amounted to N838.58 billion, while oil taxes accounted for N1.60 trillion with the Director, Communications and Liaison Department, Emmanuel Obeta, emphasising that in 2011, N955.19 billion was recorded in the first quarter and N985.30 billion in the second quarter.
The revenue-generating body also said that N1.59 trillion was realised from Petroleum Profit Tax, while gas income accounted for N9.04 billion. N405.58 billion was collected from Companies Income Tax; N3.35 billion from Capital Gains Tax and N3.25 from Stamp Duties in the same period. The Nigeria Customs Service’s Import and Non-Import Value Added Tax (VAT) recorded N353.83 billion, Education Tax accounted for N32.8, while National Information Technology Development Fund yielded N8.52 billion in a target for the year that has been put at N5.085 trillion.
It also said Personal Income Tax and Pre-Operational Levy on the other hand yielded N28.56 billion.
Excitedly, in a statement, Obeta said: “The 2012 figure represents a remarkable increase in tax collection which includes oil and non-oil revenue with both recording N1.17 trillion and N1.26 trillion in the first and second quarters respectively.”
Of course, this was good news to the government and officials of the FIRS as it was a feat that would have been considered unattainable some years ago. It was, however, not a cause for celebration for the citizens many of whom have now seen the current administration as not serious with the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan.
To them, the announcement has further exposed the lack of vision of the government and the thievery that has become the hallmark of the administration.
In their analysis, the FIRS can effectively fund the N4.7 trillion 2012 budget of the Federal Government if it could generate up to half of the needed amount in six months. And if this is the case, the country had no reason to continue to complain of lack of resources to fund its development agenda or even live partly on borrowed funds. This, according to them, is even moreso with other revenue-generating agencies for the government announcing the figures they have realised so far.
“As at July, all the revenue agencies of the Federal Government had already generated about N3 trillion, which is N1.7 trillion less than the total budget, yet we have plans for deficit. This government has taken a loan of N400 billion to balance the deficit, yet, you have not released more than N400 billion out of the N1.7 trillion Capital budget.
“This generated money we are talking does not include the revenue from NNPC,” says Dr. Samuel Adejare, a member of the Anti-corruption Committee of the House of Representatives, who accused the executive arm of the Federal Government of failing in the performance of this year’s budget thus far.
A lawmaker at the Lagos State House of Assembly, Bisi Yusuf, emphasised that with such an amount half of the year, it meant the country would have more than enough for the budget. “We would even have surplus instead of budget deficit.
“So definitely, it is now incumbent on the managers of our resources at the federal level, which in this case is the Presidency, to implement our budget without any excuse. It is worrisome that at this period of the year, the total performance of this year’s budget at the federal level is nothing to write home about.
“One is now forced to question the integrity, competence and honesty of the Federal Government when it comes to effective implementation of the budget. While people are wallowing in abject poverty, the Federal Government has a lot of money to toy with.
“What the FIRS has done is to expose the ineptitude of the Federal Government. With this huge amount of money, how many roads have they constructed? How many waterways or rail system have they worked on? How about poverty alleviation? These are issues that are supposed to agitate the minds of our leaders. I just pray that we do not witness what happened in Egypt and such other countries when their leaders could not see beyond their nose.
“There is no country that can contain the population of Nigeria if this happens. We have one of the ministers who vied for the position of the topmost position in the World Bank. If we have such a guru in the present government who has refused to translate her knowledge for the good of the people, then it is unfortunate,” Yusuf told P.M. NEWS.
His colleague, Ipoola Omisore, said he would not be surprised if nothing is achieved at the end of the year in relation to the budget. His opinion is that Nigeria has become one where unaccountability is the norm.
Omisore said the announcement by the FIRS and other revenue-generating agencies was an eye opener, urging the National Assembly to look beyond what it is looking at in terms of oil subsidy as if he knew that the government had removed the section that would mandate it to make public the amount of crude it sells and the revenue generated from the sales of crude from the Petroleum Industry Bill currently at the National Assembly.
“They should focus on the total money coming into the country. There’s a lot of leakages and loopholes in the system. We know how many billions we lose from stolen oil at high seas, we know how much the NNPC is losing, to the extent that the nation’s income is not even known.”
“The reason we have to go aborrowing is yet unknown and I think the National Assembly should look at all these, but can we even trust them to look at anything? But if you say police is not good, we should try crime? If we say the National Assembly is not good, who would do the checks? So we must continue to ask robbers to chase robbers, but definitely, we need to look at the county’s income.
“The nation is sick and has remained imbecile after 52 years of its independence. We need to sit and talk. Sovereign National Conference might do the magic.
Omisore described as a shame the fact that the country’s wealth has remained unknown despite the purported fight against corruption by the government.
“The way the Federal Government goes to take money from the reserves abroad is questionable to the extent that we do not even know how much we owe. Obasanjo cleared the debt, but we have realised that this government has borrowed more money than we know. How much have they borrowed and who is checking the debt? It is strange to discover that Nigeria is so blessed and yet goes aborrowing and our people are dying of hunger,” Omisore lamented
Another lawmaker, Hakeem Masha, told P.M. NEWS that posers being raised by Nigerians concerning how revenue are being managed or mismanaged are genuine.
Masha said: “Even here in Lagos, people have raised questions concerning our internally generated revenue and how we spend it, but they fail to consider the inflow of the population that comes into the state daily, as against the Federal Government that could make over N4 trillion in a year. The lamentations of the people against the President are just. Why should he always go aborrowing whenever he needs funds?”
The consequence of the poor performance of the budget on the economy is also raising concerns among Nigerians as every sector of the country has remained shut or best put, crumbling.
Putting it succinctly, Yusuf stressed: “The rate of suicide cases in the country has increased due to the failed economy. Cases of divorce are increasing because people can no longer bear the failed system. There is no means of keeping homes. The remote cause of violence and depression in the country today is the failed system and economy.
“Young girls have now resorted to prostitution. Primary and secondary school girls now know nothing other than hawking while those without conscience lure them and do what they like with them and because of the situation in the home, their parents would not have the courage to question them.
“This is what is going on while our people are wasting the funds as they like. It is a food for thought.”
It remains to be seen what would happen in September when the members of the House of Representatives reconvene. Some of them have maintained that the threat against the President is real and that the executive arm has no choice but to sit up if it wants to meet the expectations of the House by then.
Again, when the House reconvenes, President Jonathan’s much touted excuse that he had been derailed by the Boko Haram may not work. Dr. Adejare, who spoke concerning the plans of the House, said the issue of Boko Haram being a stumbling block to the Jonathan administration’s performance will be critically looked at.
“When we get to the floor of the House, we will take all issues as they come. The budget is a concise and precise document that says this road here and that road there; we will see how many of these roads are in those places Boko Haram is terrorising and we will see how many of the roads are in places they are not terrorising. So people should stop talking as if those of us in that House are buffoons, we will not take it,” he told P.M. NEWS.

This feature was earlier published P.M. NEWS