"Is Mr. Taiwo Oyedele's Advanced Knowledge Of The Issues Of Taxation And The Removal Of Oil Subsidy In Macro Economics Not Limited In A True Practical Analysis?" By David Adeyinka Adenekan.

"Suffice it to say, there is a shadow of organic movement arising from severe hunger that may cause Tinubu his second term re-election bid, particularly from the Northern Region", David Adenekan.

To start with, the rhetorics demonstrated by Taiwo Oyedele, The Chairman of the 'Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms' is not truly addressing the macro economic effects of the tax value on the citizenry at this point of a wide inflationary gap. 

[Please endeavor to watch the 4-minite-24 second video clip attached herewith]

No country in the world that has floated her national currency in the open market, the way President Bola Ahmed Tinubu did, is likely to survive the kind of economic quandary Nigeria is experiencing today. 

Yes, it was true at a point in 2023 under Tinubu, due to monumental corruption, that our foreign exchange reserves was depleted to about $3 billion Dollars, according to J P Morgan as reported by 'Punch Newspaper'. The big issue is that we are merely looking inward to save our economy from a near depression.

Moreover, it is still corruption galore since the inception of the current government – from illegal mining to about 30% of illegal oil bunkering out of the national pool of crude oil that we are producing daily under the former NNPCL leadership of Mele Kyari – and to the rising surge of insecurity at the instance of the Fulani Herdsmen / Marauders who are chasing  our farmers away from their farmlands. All these have the combined effect of affecting our Gross Domestic Product, GDP. 

Two of our focus views of institutional corruptions under the current administration are; Betty Edu, former 'Minister For Humanitarian Affairs And Poverty Alleviation', and Mele Kyari, former Group Managing Director of NNPCL, both of whom are drowning in alleged institutional corruption scandals.

The bottom line is that fiscal and monetary policies in the absence of increase in productivity cannot overhaul an almost dead economy like that of Nigeria of today. 

We may need to ask ourselves, for example, how Ibrahim Traore, a President of a non-oil producing country, Burkina Faso, is pulling the strings to create a stable, virile and fast-growing economy in Sub Sahara Africa. Of course, it is by looking inward, eliminating corruption, and putting a halt to the collection of foreign aids or loans, while making very good use of available natural resources to build a new country.

Nigeria is in dire need of a visionary and purposeful leadership which can 'take the bull by the horns' to do the needful by changing the trajectory from a country of 'dumping ground' to a 'producing country' for a true nation building. Yes, it is doable, devoid of institutional corruption. 

As good as some of the tax reform policies are, they may not solve the problem of majority of our people that currently wallow in abject poverty : Why? You can only successfully tax people whose income will add up. Is Tinubu’s tax regime policy taking into cognizance the fact that the N70,000 monthly minimum wage is still below the poverty line, even as Nigeria's inflation rate defies all logic? 

Moreover, the disposable incomes of many of the citizenry across the different salary scales are not just adding up, as prices of basic needs like foods, medications, and shelters continue to skyrocket.

In the final analysis, Taiwo Oyedele is on record as coming from a solid background, including :_

Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader at PwC where he worked for 22 years, including over 10 years in top leadership positions, gaining indepth knowledge and diverse experience ranging from 'Tax Advisory & Policy Advocacy' to 'Business Strategy Consulting', 'Leadership Development', and :Policy Design & Execution'.

Also, he is an Accountant and an Economist by training. 

He was the Thematic Lead for the 'Fiscal Policy & Planning Commission', and Chairman of the 'West Africa Debt Management Roundtable of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG)'; Chairman of the 'Taxation & Fiscal Policy Faculty Board of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN)'; Member of the 'Nigerian Taxation Standards Board of CITN'; and a Member of the 'Ministerial Committee on The Design and Implementation of Nigeria’s National Tax Policy'.

Mr. Oyedele is a Fellow of the 'Nigeria Leadership Initiative', Member of the 'Global Tax Forum', and a former Member of the 'Global Governing Council of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)'.

He is an Associate Professor at the Babcock University and a Guest Lecturer at the Lagos Business School. He is an alumnus of the London School of Economics & Political Science, Yale University, and Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education. He is the Founder and President of 'Impact Africa Foundation'.

This article speaks TRUTH to POWER, however, even with all these weapons in Oyedele's arsenal, he can not get beyond the brief that is handed down to him by his boss, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu! ℹ🤷🏾‍♂️

Hmmm, lakaye lagba (wisdom is supreme).

Mark my words : The severe hunger in the land may snowball into a great movement against Tinubu's re-election bid in 2027 so much that even his power of incumbency, coupled with electoral malpractices, might not be able to stop an organic movement borne out of hopelessness, severe hunger and despair. 

"An hungry man is an angry man";  "ẹ̀ni ebi ñ pa kò gbọ́ àlàyé." 😩

Suffice it to say, there is a shadow of organic movement arising from severe hunger that may cause Tinubu his second term re-election bid, particularly from the Northern Region.

"A stitch in time saves nine."

Time will tell.

David Adeyinka Adenekan Is The Editor Of 'Shekinah International Magazine' And A Media Consultant. He Is Also The Secretary of 'Afenifere Diaspora USA'. He Writes From Chicago, Illinois.