Atiku Accuses Tinubu of Excessive Taxation and Opacity

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), has accused President Bola Tinubu's administration of imposing excessive taxation on Nigerians and businesses, leading to significant economic strain. In a statement from his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku condemned the administration's response to the United States Government's assessment, which indicated that Nigeria failed to meet minimum fiscal transparency requirements.

The assessment highlighted deficiencies in budget information, revenue and expenditure reporting, audit independence, and public access to procurement information. Atiku criticized the government's dismissal of the assessment as an “external benchmark” and demanded transparency regarding the allocation of resources from the removal of fuel subsidies, questioning the delay in publishing financial details.

He emphasized the contradiction in the administration's approach to taxation, noting that while it offers tax relief to large corporations, it imposes burdensome taxes on small and medium enterprises.