President Bola Tinubu will dispatch an “emergency fiscal bill” to the National Assembly within the next two weeks for consideration, Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji, has said.
Mr Adedeji disclosed this on Wednesday while defending the budget of the Service before the House Representatives Committee on Finance.
The FIRS chief explained that the bill aims to provide clarity on the fiscal direction of the president amid the current economic hardship the country is grappling with. He said the bill is awaiting approval of the Federal Executive Council but that once it is done in the next couple of days it will be transmitted to the National Assembly.
Mr Adedeji did not disclose the content of the bill but stated that the Finance Minister, Wale Edun, will engage with lawmakers to discuss its content before presentation to the National Assembly.
“If not for change, I know one should have come yesterday. It was listed at FEC. Hopefully, we will have the first one that we will label an ‘emergency bill’ that addresses those critical issues,” he said.
Nigeria is facing a challenging macroeconomic environment, marked by inflationary pressure, foreign exchange volatility, and a food crisis.
In recent months, the Central Bank Governor, Yemi Cardoso, has been notably active in addressing the monetary aspects of the crisis, while the fiscal front has remained relatively quiet.
The hardship has triggered protests in some parts of the country. On Tuesday, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) held a nationwide protests across the country over economic hardship.
Credit: premiumtimesng.com
