Stop your proposed increase in VAT- Bola Tinubu tells FG

APC National Leader, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has asked the federal government to halt the planned increase in Value Added Tax(VAT). He said it will amount to taxing ordinary men in the country.

Tinubu, who spoke at the 11th Bola Tinubu Colloquium to mark his 67th birthday in Abuja this morning, said the government should widen the tax net and ensure all those Nigerians who have refused to pay their tax are made to do so as a way of raising revenue.

He said increasing VAT at this stage will not help the ordinary man in the country, adding that those in charge of generating revenue for the country must begin to think of other sources of revenue.

''I must say this to Prof Osinbajo and his team, don’t increase VAT but increase tax net to accommodate those who are not yet paying. Don’t reduce the people’s purchasing power. We must criticise ourselves.” he said

The Federal government last week announced plans to increase VAT as a way of generating funds to pay for the N33,000 new minimum wage.