The Director-General of National Orientation Agency, Malam Lanre Issa-Onilu, has promised to support the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee in sensitising Nigerians on the benefits of the new tax laws.
Issa-Onilu made the promised when the Committee, led by its Chairman, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, paid him a courtesy visit on Friday in Abuja.
The NOA boss noted that technology had made it easy for mischievous persons to effortlessly spread fake news and wrong narrative against the new tax laws.
According to him, the law will be beneficial because, it has addressed the issue of double taxation that companies, workers, individual and investors are passing through.
“We have about 818 office locations across the country in the 774 local government areas and six regional headquarters with quality personnel that are good in advocacy and enlightenment.
“We have also done mapping across the country for engagements with all Nigerians; that is why we can engage groups such as Associations, CSOs, traders union, leaders, women groups, youths and many others.
“We do have engagements with them, and our people are from those areas; that is part of the advantage we have.
“We also work with over 200 radio stations across the country using 72 local languages put together. We also partner 36 television stations and many others.
“We launched our own version of ChatGPT called CLEEN where Nigerians can engage and get authentic information.
“So these are tools we have to assist and support the committee in sensitising Nigerians on the new tax laws,” Issa-Onilu said
He, however, noted that the NOA would have a joint team to identify areas of collaboration with the Committee.
Speaking earlier, Oyedele said he was in NOA to seek for support for the committee in countering the wrong narrative against the new tax laws.
“We believe that working together with NOA will ensure the passage of accurate information to Nigerians, even to those at the grassroots to know the benefits of the new tax laws.
“We observed that there is a lot of misinformation to people especially those at the grassroots, including farmers concerning the law. And the aim of such is to make them hate the government ignorantly.
“Though, we are engaging multinationals, but our people of different tribes need to know the benefits they will get from the said law and support it.
“We need to create characters, like having farmers, students, CEOs and others to say what the reform can do for them.
”These can counter the wrong narratives by some content providers that are against the law,” Oyedele said.
He said when people are sensitised and are aware of the benefits they would gain from the new tax law, no one will want to protest against it in the street.
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that high point of the visit was the presentation of the new tax laws to Issa-Onilu and also the presentation of the National Value Charter Plaque to Oyedele. (NAN)