Northern Senators convened a two-hour closed-door meeting on Thursday, following the Senate’s passage of the controversial Tax Reform Bills for a second reading......Read The Full Article>>.....Read The Full Article>>
The meeting, held in Room 301 of the National Assembly Complex, was announced during the plenary session.
However, the details of the discussions remain undisclosed, as Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, declined to comment afterwards.
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Earlier in the day, the Senate mandated its Committee on Finance to invite governors, the Governors Forum, traditional rulers, and other stakeholders to a public hearing on the bills. The Finance Committee has been directed to report back within six weeks.
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Although the current vice president of the United States did not emerge victorious in the recent presidential election, Kamala Harris, has been described as a global catalyst for women in leadership and governance. As the first woman, first Black person, and first person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president of the United States, her candidacy challenges global perceptions of leadership in this male-dominated world. Her success serves as an inspiration for women to pursue political leadership roles worldwide.
In this context, analysts believe that Kamala Harris’s groundbreaking achievement offers hope and encouragement for Nigerian women to vote, volunteer, and run for office. A Nigerian lawyer and gender advocate Titilope Anifowoshe described Harris’s accomplishments during the US election as a moment of heartache and hope. According to Anifowoshe, despite the challenges women face in pursuing leadership roles, they will continue to stand tall in spaces where women before them have been excluded.
Anifowoshe emphasised that women will persist in fighting stereotypes and confronting injustice, even when faced with significant barriers. A stark example of such barriers is the delayed implementation of the 35% affirmative action for women in appointive positions in Nigeria. This delay persists despite a successful campaign led by the Nigerian Women Trust Fund and other civil society organisations, culminating in a landmark Federal High Court judgment in 2022. The court ordered that 35% of appointive positions in the federal government be assigned to women.
In this light, Anifowoshe lamented women’s challenges, saying, “Sometimes, the world feels unbearably heavy, as though every attempt to break free is met with another wall, another reminder of the old ways.”
She expressed optimism for the future of herself and future generations in Nigeria and Africa, stating, “One day, we will raise daughters and sons who believe in equity as naturally as they breathe.”
Commenting on how Nigerian women can emulate the American vice president, civil society leader Auwal Rafsanjani, who observed the US elections, argued that Nigeria must first build strong political party systems grounded in ideology, much like the Democratic and Republican parties in the US.
Rafsanjani stated, “Until we return to the basics and build solid political parties with clear manifestos and programs that people can subscribe to, we will not be able to make meaningful progress.” He added that without political parties rooted in ideology and principles, it is difficult to recruit members committed to those ideals.
He further pointed out that the lack of accountability in Nigeria’s political system hinders the recruitment of competent and capable candidates, especially women, for electoral positions. Rafsanjani stressed the need to build a political system that responds to the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians based on principles and ideology so that Nigerian women can compete equally with men in elections.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele (APC, Ekiti Central) led the debate on the bills after the lawmakers returned from an initial executive session.
The four tax bills sent to the National Assembly include the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, which is expected to provide the fiscal framework for taxation in the country, and the Tax Administration Bill, which will provide a legal framework for all taxes in the country and reduce disputes.
Others are the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, which will repeal the Federal Inland Revenue Service Act and establish the Nigeria Revenue Service; and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill which will create a tax tribunal and a tax ombudsman.
