BY GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE

Chatered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria has flayed what it described as multiplicity of taxes which it said was a discouraging factor in the nation drive for foreign investment. The Institute stated that unless urgent steps are taken to redress the current tax policy in the country, poverty and unemployment will persists.

The President of the institute, John Femi Jegede, who stated this while addressing participants at the 2011 Benin zonal mandatory professional training programme for members lamented the cost push effect of inflation in the country despite the enormous potentials in the country and sued tax reduction as instrument of economic re-engineering. He appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to pass the personal income tax bill into law.

Mr. Jegede also appealed to the National Assembly to pass the income tax bill which he claimed has been pending before it and stressed the need for some members of CITN to be appointed into Joint tax board, JTB and federal Inland Revenue service, FIRS.

His words: “When taxes are high, investors will take their investment elsewhere. When you lower the tax, you make the economy investment friendly for foreign investors, then people will be employed, income would be generated. There will be a multiplier effect because new employee will pay to Government and incidence of poverty will be reduced, he said.

He expressed worry over the future of the country, saying, “This is what China, Russia and India did and it’s working for them