BY BONNY AMADI WITH AGENCY REPORTS
The Nigerian government, in an effort to enhance connectivity and make communications easy and cheaper for citizens, has reduced duty on telecom services.
Disclosing this, Aminu Maida, the executive vice chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), says President Bola Tinubu has removed the 5 percent excise duty on telecommunications services.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, Maida said the levy, which had been temporarily suspended, has now been scrapped under the new tax law.
“The excise duty, it was the 5 percent or so, that is no longer there,” he said.
“Before it was suspended, but now the president has been magnanimous to remove it entirely. I was in a room when it was raised, and he said, no, we cannot put this on Nigerians. I was very pleased when the bills came out and we saw his words were followed through.”
On July 6, 2023, Tinubu signed four executive orders, including the suspension of the 5 percent excise tax on telecommunication services to ameliorate the negative impact of tax adjustments on businesses and households.
However, the national assembly, on October 20, 2024, proposed the reintroduction of the excise duty on telecommunications services, gaming, betting, and lottery activities.
The proposal was rejected by the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), which said it would be unfair for the government to impose an excise duty when it is striving to sustain operations.
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