The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) says it will retain till next year the tax reliefs for individuals and businesses in states, which was implemented to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The NGF made this known in a resolution that was passed at its 16th teleconference meeting of the governors held on Wednesday, August 2, 2020.
In a statement issued at the end of the meeting and signed by the NGF Chairman, Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, “all state governments, through their internal revenue services, will ensure seamless implementation of the tax relief programmes for businesses and other taxpayers.
“These programmes which were released in some states since March 2020 were designed to reduce the financial burden of taxpayers in the country up till 2021 in some cases.”
Also, for the purpose of addressing concerns raised by states on the reception of new inmates amidst measures being taken to curtail the spread of COVID-19 at the correctional facilities in the country, the NGF resolved to work, through its sub-committee interfacing with the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19.
“The NGF resolved to provide leadership to the COVID-19 response in their respective states by ramping up risk communication activities and community testing.”
In its desire to interface with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources on the actualization of the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP), the forum mandated state governments to nominate focal persons for the implementation of the process.
However, leadership of the forum emphasized the need to be vigilant and ensure that the structures put in place for routine polio immunization are not jeopardised by the COVID-19 pandemic in the light of the Rotary International’s recognition of the forum’s role in ending the polio infection in the country.
