The House Committee on Finance decided to hold a separate meeting because a joint hearing with the Senate scheduled for last week was botched due to a conflict between the two chambers of the National Assembly.
The executive bill, which was presented by President Muhammadu Buhari to the National Assembly as part of the measures to shore up revenue to finance the 2020 budget, seeks to amend the Petroleum Profit Tax Act, Customs and Excise Tariff Act, Company Income Tax Act, Personal Income Tax Act, Value Added Tax, Stamp Duties Act and the Capital Gain Tax.
The Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Benjamin Kalu, blamed the non-appearance of the House of Representatives’ members at the joint hearing on “miscommunication error.”Kalu said, “There are various ways of communicating. We have the official ways of transmitting information between the two chambers. I don’t think members of the House or the senators receive their communication through television or radio or others. There must have been a communication error somewhere.
“If there was proper communication, I don’t see any reason why both chambers would not sit on such an important bill. The most important thing is that the bill is being worked on. And whether they do it jointly or hold separate public hearings, it does not stop the process or make it ineffective, inefficient or illegal.”
The Senate and House committees had planned to hold a joint hearing on the bill on Tuesday, but the latter boycotted the event, alleging marginalisation in the organisation of the exercise.All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from PUNCH.