Toll Exemptions Scrapping: Stop more special treatments for VIPs, Nigerians urge Tinubu

• Attachment Of Policemen To VIPs, Wealthy Nigerians Should Be Stopped, Say Arewa Chieftain, CLO
• Number Of Cars On The Convoy Of Political Office Holders Should Be Reduced To Barest Minimum – Nwachukwu
• What Nigerians Need Now Are Deliberate Policies That Will Bring Down Cost Of Living – Friday

Against the backdrop of the caller determination by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to scrap toll exemptions for each Very Important Persons (VIPs) and apical authorities officials astatine the airports, Nigerians person called for the abolishment of much privileges enjoyed by the affected individuals.

While commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for taking the bold measurement successful approving that himself and each authorities officials indispensable present wage tolls and parking fees astatine the airports, they called for the judicious usage of funds generated from the tollgates.

They besides urged the President to guarantee the enforcement of the caller directive.

The FEC had astatine its gathering connected Tuesday, May 14, this year, announced that President Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima and different apical Nigerian authorities officials would present to wage entree fees astatine the toll points of the airports crossed the country.

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, who made the announcement, said the support for this class of Nigerians to commencement paying the fees was fixed pursuing a memo helium presented astatine the FEC meeting

His words: “For the aviation sector, we presented 2 memos and got 2 approvals.

“The archetypal support that we sought and obtained was with the respect to mandatory payments of entree fees by each visitors astatine our national airdrome tollgates nationwide. No much exemption. No much exemption.

“When we came to office, we met a contented connected the crushed wherever astatine the extremity of the year, each mode of VIPs would attack america for what they telephone complimentary e-tags oregon complimentary stickers whereby you spot them coming into our airports nationwide. They don’t wage the entree fees. They don’t wage for parking, they don’t wage for indispensable services astatine airports and they are VIPs.

“And I told myself and my team, not nether my watch. It volition not happen. If this contented has existed for years, I volition not let it to happen; due to the fact that it is inconceivable that successful our state it is the VIPs that don’t wage for services but it is the mediocre men that wage for services. The VIPs were expected to person wealth to wage for services but they compel mediocre men to wage for services. And I said no.

“So, I got my squad together. I said we request the backing of Council to compel everybody. In fact, conjecture what? Our memo says with the objection of the president and the vice president. And the president overruled maine and said helium and the vice president volition pay. He said everybody.”

Reacting to the development, the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) stated that whether the tolls are paid oregon not, it would ever beryllium astatine the disbursal of the suffering radical due to the fact that the precise important persons that were not paying it earlier present person thing to lose.

The Executive Director of the CLO, Ibuchukwu Ezike, noted that immoderate betterment oregon enforcement bid by the Presidency that does not code the existent suffering successful the onshore should beryllium seen arsenic a non-issue.

Ezike said: “I don’t truly spot immoderate value that is attached to this announcement oregon cancellation. So, for america successful the CLO, it is simply a non-issue”

Prodded to talk connected the benefits of the decision, Ezike added: “The benefits are to them not to the suffering and bare Nigerians. Will that argumentation bring down the pump prices of petroleum products particularly fuel, state and kerosene that mediocre Nigerians usage oregon the complaint of dollar to naira oregon pursuit the slayer herdsmen distant from the farms truthful that our farmers crossed the state tin spell backmost to their farms to nutrient foods successful bully quantity for the masses? Will it restructure Nigeria and termination the master-servant syndrome successful the country?

“Nigerians are hungry; location rents person risen above the poor. Our acquisition strategy has collapsed; galore superb and intelligent children are retired of schoolhouse due to the fact that of poorness and our radical are killed similar fowls being offered to idols portion foreigners person taken implicit Nigeria and are committing each kinds of crimes against our people. Corruption has risen to the highest level and truthful on.

“In Nigeria, today, authorities has zero tolerance and respect for the Fiscal Responsibility Act arsenic the federal, authorities and section governments grant contracts without recourse to this Act. Employment interviews are secretly conducted and radical who are connected who bash not cognize however to constitute their names fto unsocial cognize the enactment for which they are employed. This is 1 of the large ills sidesplitting Nigeria today. Toll exemption is the slightest of Nigerians’ problems.”

Ezike, however, called for the scrapping of different VIP treatments including the deployment of constabulary unit to support 1 nationalist serviceman oregon affluent idiosyncratic portion communities are near to their fate.

“Assignment of galore constabulary offers to 1 VIP should beryllium scrapped. Assignment of galore authoritative vehicles to 1 idiosyncratic portion millions are astatine the autobus stops waiting for buses nether the rainfall and sunshine should beryllium scrapped; the wealth for the acquisition of VIP vehicles should beryllium utilized to interval buses for the masses.

Keyamo

“CLO would privation the Immunity Clause successful the constitution revoked truthful that if the president oregon his/her vice commits crimes oregon governors and their deputies perpetrate crimes, they should beryllium promptly prosecuted. Immunity Clause was planted successful the constitution by the thieving subject dictators, which our corrupt politicians person continued to clasp due to the fact that they person the volition to loot, plunder and steal.

“Lastly is the contented of information votes. We bash not advocator its scrapping but that it indispensable beryllium taxable to legislative support similar the budgets and prone to probe aft each quarter. The crushed for collecting information votes indispensable beryllium genuine and credible,” helium added.

Speaking successful the aforesaid vein, the Coordinator of Advocates of Rights and Justice, Helen Nwachukwu, stated that determination was thing to observe astir the development, explaining that the affected officials would not pay the toll from their pockets.

“It is taxation payers’ wealth that they would usage to money the toll gross fees not their idiosyncratic money. So, determination should beryllium nary excitement astir it.

“Nigeria is structured successful a mode that the suffering radical volition proceed to wage for the payment of the elite and those successful elective offices. Why would President Tinubu not usage the aforesaid enforcement fiat successful scrapping different issues that person hindered the growth of the country?

“Nigerians are passing done hard times. So, what I americium expecting is an accidental that tin enactment nutrient connected the array of the radical and not scrapping of toll exemptions. Whether they wage oregon not has thing to bash with the poor. This is thing those who deliberation retired immoderate of these things don’t understand,” she said.

Nwachukwu said her organisation has been advocating for a simplification successful the salaries and allowances of nationalist officials.

“We person been saying that these officials are not doing amended than those successful different professions but each the appeals person fallen to deaf ears. Look astatine the existent disagreement betwixt labour and the Federal Government implicit minimum wage. Is it expected to beryllium an contented if the authorities is radical friendly?

“Cost of materials successful the marketplace is connected the precocious broadside aft President Tinubu removed substance subsidy. Since that disfigured incident, what has helium done to ameliorate the suffering of the people? Since the removal of this subsidy, much wealth is entering the pouch of the government. But what we spot is that alternatively of utilizing it rescue the people, they are utilizing it to empower the governors who are gradually turning into tyrants successful their assorted states.”

Nwachukwu called for the simplification of the fig of cars connected the convoy of governors and different governmental bureau holders to the barest minimum.

“Whatever anybody is saying without addressing the outgo of governance, the idiosyncratic is wasting his time. Tolls they were not paying astatine the airports person thing to bash with the economy. The ones that volition marque needed impacts are being glossed implicit due to the fact that that is wherever they marque their money. But if we are sincere with our callings, we should beryllium capable to enactment for the people,” she said.

On his part, Michael Friday said the determination is portion of President Tinubu’s re-election strategies.

Friday, who expressed choler astatine the existent economical concern and suffering successful the country, maintained that the determination would not bring immoderate remedy to the citizens from the existent hardship.

Friday, who is simply a nationalist administrator, argued that with the extent of corruption successful the country,  those successful powerfulness volition inactive swindle the proceeds generated from the toll gates and permission communal Nigerians to proceed to suffer.

He maintained that what the federation needs astatine the infinitesimal are deliberate policies, actions and monitoring that would trim the pump terms of petrol, standard up the worth of the naira and trim the precocious outgo of foods and transportation.

“These are conscionable what tin assistance the Nigerian system to bounce back; scrapping toll exemptions for VIPs with the existent economical concern successful the state is similar pouring h2o connected a stone. It will have nary impact. If the Federal Government doesn’t cognize what to bash to remedy our situation, it should question proposal from sincere radical not greedy politicians,” helium noted.

Some residents of Rivers State, however, commended the government, describing the determination arsenic a invited development.

According a argumentation and nationalist affairs analyst, Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, outgo of toll fees by VIPs would assistance to rise much wealth for the moving of authorities and addressing citizens’ needs.

“Nigerian authorities officials are known to thrust fleet of cars with escort vehicles to the airports. Thus, the outgo of entree tolls and parking fees would summation airdrome gross and show starring by example. These benefits are important to code our ailing taxation revenues,” helium said.

Fyneface, who is the Executive Director of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria), urged the Tinubu medication to spell a measurement further and scrap the usage of statesmanlike jets and adjacent authoritative vehicles and escorts by presidents, ministers, governors and different authorities officials for non-official functions.

“Besides, those authorities officials that were not elected by Nigerians, including members of the president’s household flying the statesmanlike fleet with Mr. President, should beryllium made to wage to usage the fleet with Mr. President,” helium added.

Former Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) General Secretary, Elder Anthony Sani, besides commended the decision, saying the authorities needs to enactment up gross from disposable sources.

“I spot thing incorrect successful payments astatine airports’ parking abstraction and toll gates by the President and different authorities apical functionaries. This is due to the fact that these nationalist facilities are maintained with resources which are obtained done taxes,” Sani said.

He, however, noted that “the lone caution is for the authorities to enactment that taxes should bespeak the wellness level of the economy.”

He said the benefits of specified taxes oregon levies coming from the VIPs “would beryllium that the attraction of specified facilities would beryllium made easier and vandalisation of nationalist utilities would trim substantially due to the fact that the nationalist would ain specified facilities.”

Sani besides stated that “policemen and soldiers attached to VIP should beryllium reduced and freed to unafraid the nation.”

The Executive Director, Journalists for Democratic Rights (JODA), Wale Adeoye, besides welcomed idea.

He said: “Leaders should ever effort to acceptable a precise bully illustration for the country. The information that backstage people, who worked hard for their wealth are made to wage tolls and radical who gain their salaries from taxpayers’ money, who are fixed escaped accommodation, escaped wellness services, escaped cars and stupendous salaries are not paying tolls of N1000 and N500, is simply a nullification of the rule of the regularisation of law. In a mean country, each of america should beryllium seen arsenic adjacent earlier the law. Even though we cognize that determination is immunity for the president and governors determination is nary immunity from paying tax. It is simply a atrocious argumentation close from the opening that apical officials of government, including elected politicians, are exempted from paying tolls astatine the airports.

“They person been mounting precise unspeakable examples for the country. They are saying that they are supra economical laws that usher the country. The annulment of the argumentation is simply a precise bully happening that ought to person been done a agelong clip ago,” Adeoye said.

The quality rights crusader, however, said the occupation with the improvement would beryllium enforcement. “Will the authorities beryllium capable to enforce the caller policy?” helium asked rhetorically.

He besides urged the authorities to scrap the privileges for lawmakers who proceed to bargain Sport Utility Vehicles worth hundreds of millions of naira each word with taxpayers’ money.

“This is encouraging corruption. This argumentation destroys the nation’s system and entrenches institutionalised corruption. The toll we are talking astir is conscionable astir N500 to N1000,” helium added.

Describing the improvement arsenic laughable, Deputy Chairman, Joint Action Fronts, Achike Chude, said it is incumbent connected President Tinubu to archer Nigerians however overmuch it would prevention by asking VIPs to wage tolls astatine the airport.

He said Nigerians should beryllium told what the wealth they privation to realise would beryllium utilized for.

“We privation to cognize if the wealth volition utilized to upgrade the airdrome oregon not. Nigerians privation to beryllium convinced that the argumentation is the close happening to bash present different radical person the content that this authorities is simply retired to marque policies that are meant to impoverish the people,” helium said.

He noted that the content astir President Tinubu is that the authorities simply sits down and thinks astir however to marque wealth from the radical without looking astatine the consequences economically.

“Maybe they privation to instill immoderate subject by making the affluent spell done what the radical are facing; but that would beryllium perfectly hypocritical and a misplacement of the knowing of the socio-economic crises that we have.

“What Nigerians are facing present is not astir compelling immoderate fewer radical to wage betwixt N500 to N1000 astatine the airports. The officials we are talking astir are multi millionaires. I americium yet to spot the economical worth and however it volition benefit the people,” helium noted.