Business
‘Its unfortunate my Father named me Lai, it made it easy for opposition to see me as a Liar’ – Lai Mohammed laments
Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in an interactive session with newsmen in Lagos at the weekend, speaks on issues of national interest. BOLA BADMUS brings these excerpts:
Recently, the Customs General, Ahmadu Ali, said you have 50 per cent PDP members in this administration, he even said they are more than 50per cent and that they have constituted problems for the administration, the question is, why can’t the president do something about it?
I think he has actually explained that as early as 2015, he did direct that they should bring nominations for constituting the boards and he was very clear with the directive as to who should make the boards, who should qualify. I remember he said anybody that has been a frontline actor in the run up to the elections, anybody who had either contested for primaries within the party and had lost or because they agreed on consensus and was asked to step down, anybody who actually contested elections, either at governorship level, National Assembly level or even state level against either PDP or Labour Party and had lost that these are the main stakeholders in the party, these are the people who ought to be commended for the appointments. But as you know, Mr President himself alone cannot do all these, all politics that we play is local.
I agree that those are charged with that responsibility failed and that’s why we are in the mess we are now and he has promised that there is going to be a fresh exercise because it is one thing to dissolve the board but you can’t leave them vacant and I think we are going to see a lot of progress in that direction.
But do you believe they are making money to fight your government, these PDP people that are still in your administration?
Well, I wouldn’t know where they are making the money from, but clearly in politics, they always say never empower your enemies.
Even now, two years into the office of President Buhari, some of those who worked for him have not been compensated.
That is why I used the example that I used for some governorship candidates/ aspirants, I used the example of National Assembly.
Again, don’t forget, like I say all politics is local. If I am the chairman of Delta State APC or I am a leader in Delta APC, and I given some criteria, I may decide to bypass those criteria. Mr President is too busy to look at all those things.
I know of many states for instance where people are complaining that it is not those who ought to be compensated that were compensated. Again, it’s not possible for you to compensate everybody at the same time. Certain Boards are not due for dissolution because some of them are tenured and certain boards need specialists. Certain Boards are governed by certain rules and so like you said the truth of the matter is that Mr. President as far back as 2015 gave this assignment to party members and they failed, they failed Mr President, that’s honest truth, I know.
What about the Baru and Kachikwu matter?
I think we should not go over Baru and Kachikwu’s case. To the best of my knowledge, Kachickwu made his point and Baru also, but the fine thing is that I think over time, we’ve seen Baru and Kachikwu working together, but the position of government is that I think you can’t start talking about fraud, there is nothing about $25billion fraud, not in the least.
The opposition, notably the PDP of course thought that oh, for once, we have our smoking gun against this government, but I can assure you that it is not possible under this administration to have $25billion fraud, the entire economy would collapse. There is no $25billion fraud, yes, there could have been lack of communication, understanding on procedures, but I think all that has been put behind us.
After two years, APC finally held both the caucus and NEC meetings, which to some extent by your own constitution ought to have taken place earlier than that they were held, is it that you have really changed or the meetings were held out of pressure?
Now, frankly speaking, there is no party that came to power like APC that is not bound to have the kind of challenges we’ve had. If you go back to ANC of those days and even what APC is facing today. Now our case is like we are in a rainbow party. You see people often forget that APC didn’t come into being until July 31, 2013. APC did not elect its executive council until June 2014. Within two weeks of the election of the executive, it had to face elections first in Ekiti, then few months later in Osun.
Now, what I am saying is that if you look at APC, it is made up of desparate political parties, ANPP, CPC, ACN, DPP, part of PDP, part of APGA. It takes time for these to jell and work together as a party. Now less than a year, within eight months, of being a political party, we had to face elections and when we won this election, even some members of APC had not even known one another or sat down together. So the hiccups that we experienced is normal and before we could settle down, our first test, you know was the election of National Assembly leadership which showed the political fault line of the party. Now we thank God, we are gradually mending all those fences, the party is working more together as a whole, the major gladiators now are back on the same page as you could see from what transpired at both the caucus and the NEC meetings.
Are you in any way afraid that your government might not go beyond 2019?
Now, as to whether we are afraid that the PDP would win, I can tell you absolutely, we couldn’t even contemplate it because it would be tragedy for Nigeria to fall back into the hands of PDP.
Look, we have very painstakingly taken this country through hell, I mean, they dropped us in hell, and we are taking you people out of hell, we can’t come back to Egypt. No, I am serious, it is not about APC, it is about President Muhammadu Buhari, it’s like the kind of revelations that are coming out, the kind of rot, you want those people to come back and preside over the affairs of Nigeria again.
Now, let me ask you for instance what would happen to the investigations that have been held if the PDP should win in 2019? They would be swept under the carpet.
There have always been investigations.
No, no, no, this is the first time in the history of this country that you are making real recovery. Only some days ago, we signed an MoU with the Swiss government to return $321million that was stolen from the country. I just told you that this is the first time this country is looking at our problem from a very realistic and very pragmatic view point. We are not talking about what we are going to achieve in two years or three years or four years, we are thinking of getting a solid foundation for a Nigeria that my children and your children will be able to thrive.
Unfortunately, the reform agenda is always longer than a political agenda and in many parts of the world, they plan for 10 years, they plan for 15 years, nobody plan for four years. And even if you look at our plan, we are talking about 20 years even though we know that there could be change of administration, but you do not think in short term. What I am saying is that Nigerians should never, never pray for PDP to come back and I am being sincere because I know as a minister the kind of challenges we are facing.
Do you know that when we negotiated with the Swiss government to return Abacha’s loot, they gave us conditions, one of them is that we must identify what programme we want to use the money for and that the World Bank would supervise what we are using that money for and when we now argued that we are sovereign country, you can’t dictate to us how we are going to spend the money that was stolen from our country and you are returning to us. They said yes, but when we returned part of it to your country, you relooted it under Jonathan, which is true. So I have already said that, we have delivered, I am serious, we are winning.
How do you feel when the opposition try to turn your name from Lai to lie to connote that you are a liar?
The fact that I happened to be the face of opposition and PDP has not forgiven me and they won’t. Now they look at the magnitude of what has happened to them and they hold me singularly responsible which is not fair. Now becoming the face of government again as Minister of Information, it is like saying, ‘We will deal with you.’ So it is automatic. Whatever comes from Lai Mohammed, we must shoot it down as a fake news, as a lie and unfortunately my father named me Lai also. So it is very easy for them. But what I challenge them every time is, please, give me what I have said which is not true. Emotionally you might not agree with me, but in terms of facts and figures, I have never said anything which you can dispute. You don’t have to like it but those are the facts. For them, it is not about the message, it is about the messenger. Incidentally today, with the social media where there are no rules of engagement, where there is no verification for any story, it is very easy to label anybody as a liar.
Deadline of Compliance: Nigeria’s Urgent Call for Tax Return Filing
By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com
“Shift or Structural Demand? A Declaration of Civic Duty in a Nation at a Fiscal Crossroads.”
In the unfolding narrative of national development and economic reform, few instruments are as defining as tax compliance. For Nigeria, a nation perpetually grappling with revenue shortfalls, structural dependency on a single export commodity, and entrenched informal economic behaviour, the Federal Government’s recent clarification on tax return deadlines is not mere bureaucratic noise. It is a deliberate and inescapable declaration: the social contract between citizen and state must be honoured through transparent, lawful and timely tax reporting.
At its core, the government’s pronouncement is stark in its simplicity and radical in its implications. Federal authorities, speaking through the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, have made it unequivocally clear that every Nigerian, whether employer or individual taxpayer, must file annual tax returns under the law. This encompasses self-assessment filings by individuals that too many assumed ended once employers deducted pay-as-you-earn taxes from their salaries.
This is not an optional civic suggestion, it is mandatory, backed by statute, and tied to a broader vision of national fiscal responsibility. Citizens can no longer hide behind ignorance, apathy, or false assumptions. “Many people assume that if their employer deducts tax from their salaries, their obligations end there. That is wrong,” Oyedele warned, emphasizing that the obligation to file remains with the individual under both existing and newly reformed tax laws.
The Deadlines and the Reality They Reveal.
Across the federation, state and federal revenue authorities have reaffirmed statutory deadlines in pursuit of compliance. The Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, for instance, moved to extend its filing date for employer returns by a narrow window, reflecting the reality that compliance often lags behind legal timelines. The extension was intended not as leniency, but as a pragmatic effort to allow accurate and complete submissions, underscoring that true compliance rises above mere mechanical ticking of a box.
At the federal level, Oyedele’s intervention was even more fundamental. He reminded Nigerians that annual tax returns for the preceding year must be filed in good faith, with integrity and in respect of the law. This applies regardless of income level including low-income earners who have historically believed that they are outside the tax net. “All of us must file our returns, including those earning low income,” he stated.
Herein lies one of the most challenging truths of contemporary Nigerian governance: widespread tax non-compliance is not just a technical breach of law, it is a deep cultural and structural issue that reflects decades of mistrust between citizens and the state.
The Root of the Problem: Non-Compliance as a Symptom.
Nigeria’s tax culture has long been under scrutiny. Public discourse and economic analysis consistently show that a significant majority of eligible taxpayers do not file annual returns. Oyedele highlighted that even in states widely regarded as tax administration leaders, compliance remains strikingly low, often below five percent.
This widespread non-compliance stems from multiple sources:
A long history of weak tax administration systems, where enforcement was inconsistent and penalties were rarely applied.
A perception that public services do not reflect the taxes collected, eroding the citizenry’s belief in reciprocity.
An informal economy where income often goes unrecorded, making filing seem irrelevant or impossible to many.
Lack of awareness, with many Nigerians genuinely believing that tax liability ends with employer deductions.
The government’s renewed push for compliance directly challenges these perceptions. It signals a shift from voluntary or lax compliance to structured accountability, a stance that aligns with best practices in modern public finance.
Why This Matters: Beyond Deadlines.
At its most profound level, the insistence on tax return filings is about nation-building and shared responsibility.
Scholars of public finance universally agree that a robust tax system is the backbone of sustainable development. As the eminent economist Dr. Joseph E. Stiglitz has observed, “A society that cannot mobilize its own resources through fair taxation undermines both its government’s legitimacy and its capacity to provide for its people.” Filing tax returns is not a mere administrative task, it is a declaration of participation in the collective project of national advancement.
In Nigeria’s context, this declaration carries weight. With the enactment of comprehensive tax reforms in recent years (including unified frameworks for tax administration and enforcement) authorities now possess broader statutory tools to ensure compliance and accountability. These measures, which include electronic filing platforms and stronger enforcement powers, have been framed as fair and equitable, targeting efficiency rather than arbitrariness.
Yet the success of these reforms depends heavily on citizens embracing their civic duties with sincerity. And this depends on mutual trust, the belief that paying taxes yields tangible benefits in infrastructure, education, healthcare, security and social services.
Voices From Experts: Fiscal Responsibility as a Public Ethic.
Tax law experts and economists, reflecting on the compliance push, have underscored a universal theme: taxation without transparency is inequity, but taxation with accountability is empowerment. When managed with fairness, a functional tax system can reduce dependency on volatile revenue sources, stabilise national budgets, and support long-term investment in human capital.
Professor Aisha Bello, a respected authority in fiscal policy, notes that “Tax compliance is not a burden; it is the foundation upon which social contracts are built. A citizen who honours tax obligations affirms the legitimacy of governance and demands better performance in return.”
Similarly, a leading tax scholar, Dr. Emeka Okon, argues that “The era when Nigerians could evade broader tax responsibilities simply because automatic deductions occur at source must end. For a modern economy, every eligible citizen must be part of the formal tax fold not as victims, but as stakeholders.”
These authoritative voices point to an unassailable truth: filing tax returns is both a legal requirement and a moral responsibility, an expression of citizenship in its fullest sense.
Challenges on the Ground: Compliance and Capacity.
While the rhetoric of compliance is compelling, the reality on the ground demands nuanced understanding. Many taxpayers (especially in the informal sector) lack meaningful access to digital platforms and resources for filing returns. For others, the fear of bureaucratic complexity and perceived punitive enforcement deters participation.
The government, for its part, has responded by promoting online systems and pledging greater taxpayer support. Tax authorities are increasingly engaging stakeholders to demystify filing processes, explain requirements and offer assistance. This mix of enforcement and facilitation is essential. As one seasoned revenue specialist observed: “The state cannot compel compliance through force alone; it must earn it through education, simplicity and fairness.”
The Broader Implication: A New Social Compact.
Ultimately, Nigeria’s renewed emphasis on tax return filing transcends administrative deadlines. It is an unequivocal declaration that national development is a shared responsibility, that citizens and state must engage in a transparent, accountable, and reciprocal relationship.
Tax compliance, therefore, becomes far more than a legal act; it becomes a moral claim on the nation’s future.
When citizens file their returns honestly, they affirm their stake in the nation’s destiny. When the government collects taxes transparently and deploys them effectively, it strengthens not only public services but civic trust itself.
In this sense, the deadlines proclaimed by Nigeria’s fiscal authorities mark not an end but a beginning; the beginning of a civic epoch in which accountability replaces apathy, participation replaces indifference and national purpose triumphs over fragmentation.
The road ahead will not be easy. But in demanding compliance, Nigeria is demanding more than tax returns. It is demanding commitment and that, ultimately, is the foundation on which nations are built.
BUA Foods Records 91% Surge in Profit After Tax, Hits ₦508bn in 2025
By femi Oyewale
Business
Adron Homes Unveils “Love for Love” Valentine Promo with Exciting Discounts, Luxury Gifts, and Travel Rewards
Adron Homes Unveils “Love for Love” Valentine Promo with Exciting Discounts, Luxury Gifts, and Travel Rewards
In celebration of the season of love, Adron Homes and Properties has announced the launch of its special Valentine campaign, “Love for Love” Promo, a customer-centric initiative designed to reward Nigerians who choose to express love through smart, lasting real estate investments.
The Love for Love Promo offers clients attractive discounts, flexible payment options, and an array of exclusive gift items, reinforcing Adron Homes’ commitment to making property ownership both rewarding and accessible. The campaign runs throughout the Valentine season and applies to the company’s wide portfolio of estates and housing projects strategically located across Nigeria.
Speaking on the promo, the company’s Managing Director, Mrs Adenike Ajobo, stated that the initiative is aimed at encouraging individuals and families to move beyond conventional Valentine gifts by investing in assets that secure their future. According to the company, love is best demonstrated through stability, legacy, and long-term value—principles that real estate ownership represents.
Under the promo structure, clients who make a payment of ₦100,000 receive cake, chocolates, and a bottle of wine, while those who pay ₦200,000 are rewarded with a Love Hamper. Payments of ₦500,000 attract a Love Hamper plus cake, and clients who pay ₦1,000,000 enjoy a choice of a Samsung phone or a Love Hamper with cake.
The rewards become increasingly premium as commitment grows. Clients who pay ₦5,000,000 receive either an iPad or an all-expenses-paid romantic getaway for a couple at one of Nigeria’s finest hotels, which includes two nights’ accommodation, special treats, and a Love Hamper. A payment of ₦10,000,000 comes with a choice of a Samsung Z Fold 7, three nights at a top-tier resort in Nigeria, or a full solar power installation.
For high-value investors, the Love for Love Promo delivers exceptional lifestyle experiences. Clients who pay ₦30,000,000 on land are rewarded with a three-night couple’s trip to Doha, Qatar, or South Africa, while purchasers of any Adron Homes house valued at ₦50,000,000 receive a double-door refrigerator.
The promo covers Adron Homes’ estates located in Lagos, Shimawa, Sagamu, Atan–Ota, Papalanto, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Osun, Ekiti, Abuja, Nasarawa, and Niger States, offering clients the opportunity to invest in fast-growing, strategically positioned communities nationwide.
Adron Homes reiterated that beyond the incentives, the campaign underscores the company’s strong reputation for secure land titles, affordable pricing, strategic locations, and a proven legacy in real estate development.
As Valentine’s Day approaches, Adron Homes encourages Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to take advantage of the Love for Love Promo to enjoy exceptional value, exclusive rewards, and the opportunity to build a future rooted in love, security, and prosperity.
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