It was President Bola Tinubu that declared that in the first half of this year, the revenue of Nigeria soared to over N9.1 trillion, compared to the first half of 2023.For instance, N5.2 Trillion accrued into the Federation Account for the period January to June 2023, while a total of N7.3 Trillion accrued into the account for the period July to December, 2023.However, for June this year, accruals into the Federation Account rose to N2.483 trillion in June 2024. It was N2.324.792 trillion in May, meaning for the two months of May and June this year alone, about N4.8 trillion accrued into the Federation Account while N5.2 trillion accrued into the account for the first six months of last year.The President attributed the revenue increase to the government’s efforts in blocking leakages, introducing automation, and mobilizing funding creatively, all without placing an additional burden on the people.A few days after the President spoke glowingly of the considerable increase in the revenue of the country, a process being powered by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), under the Chairmanship of Dr Zacch Adedeji, the Nigeria’s Zaccheus the Tax Collector, the World Bank also confirmed the progress being made in the area of revenue generation.The World Bank projected that following the recent increase in government revenue, Nigeria’s revenue-to-GDP ratio could rise to over 10.5 percent by the end of 2024.Ndiamé Diop, World Bank country director for Nigeria shared the forecast during an interactive session on ‘Fiscal Reforms for a More Secure Future’ at the 30th Nigerian Economic Summit, held in Abuja last month.Also, according to data released in September by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue increased by 99.82% year-over-year in the second quarter of 2024.During this period, total VAT revenue reached N1.56 trillion, a 9.11% increase compared to the previous quarter.The NBS report highlighted that the revenue growth was driven primarily by local payments, which brought in about $484 million, while foreign payments contributed $242 million. VAT on imports generated $228 million.However, despite the level of progress already made, the FIRS under Dr Zacch Adedeji is not done yet.Various innovations are daily being introduced to ensure seamless payment of taxes by Nigerians.Last week, the Taxpayer Services Department of the FIRS launched the new USSD code *829#, aimed at revolutionizing taxpayer engagement and access to essential tax services.According to the FIRS, the initiative was aimed at “simplifying tax processes and providing a seamless, efficient service experience.”With the *829# USSD code, taxpayers can now effortlessly access a range of services, including TIN retrieval, Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) verification, and general inquiries all from the convenience of their mobile phones and with no need for internet access.Also, Zacch Adedeji is everywhere, explaining the four tax bills currently before the National Assembly, assuring that it will not reduce the funding or operational efficiency of government agencies.Last week Wednesday, Adedeji addressed the heads of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) at the Revenue House in Abuja. He allayed concerns surrounding the proposal to rename the FIRS as the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), clarifying that the change is intended to streamline and improve agency efficiency.He said the main goal was to align government revenue practices with current fiscal demands to ensure all agencies are well-funded and effective.Adedeji further highlighted that the proposed legislation would enable government agencies to concentrate on their core responsibilities without the added task of revenue collection.“The bills, once enacted, will allow agencies to focus on their primary functions instead of managing tax collection duties,” he explained.Adedeji, who appears to have taken up the job of an Explainer concerning the new tax bills, further pointed out that the bills were the aftermath of President Tinubu’s administration recognition of the need for a unified tax code to reduce complexity and stimulate economic growth.Perhaps, by the time this is being read, Dr Zacch Adedeji, will be standing before another audience to explain the ideas behind the new tax bills and their capability to further sore up the revenue base of the country, because for him, the revenue must keep increasing.Usman, a public affairs commentator lives in Abuja.

By Best Agbese

The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company, located in Lekki, a suburb of Lagos, is seven times the size of Victoria Island, another high-end area in Lagos State. The refinery boasts of more than 350 concrete bridges, a port for oil vessels, and approximately 5,000 neatly built apartments for its staff. The refinery also incorporates the largest granulated urea fertilizer complex in Africa and sits on 500 hectares of land.

Considering the gigantic scale of the newest refinery in the world, it would be apt to submit that Alhaji Aliko Dangote, the founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, is the epitome of courage, resilience, and patriotism. His readiness to contribute to the overall development and growth of the nation’s economy is evident in his numerous impactful interventions at critical moments in our nationhood.

Sincerely speaking, it takes great courage for an individual to envision a world-class gigantic project like the Dangote Refinery. In his case, Aliko Dangote not only visualized the possibility of constructing one of the world’s largest refinery plants but also saw it through to realization. For a businessman and entrepreneur to venture into such a capital-intensive project in an unpredictable business environment marked by policy flip-flops and unhealthy politicization is quite remarkable.

Only a patriotic investor who is deeply committed to the unity and economic growth of his country can attempt such a bold step. With this historic move in the oil sector, Aliko Dangote stands alone in the pantheon of patriotic business leaders in Nigeria.

One very notable fact is that the rising price of petroleum products in Nigeria has resulted in significant hardship, particularly for the average Nigerian. While the current hardship caused by the fuel subsidy removal, intended to address long-term economic challenges, has had a detrimental impact on many, the immediate effect of the subsidy removal policy has further exacerbated the wealth gap between the rich and the poor.

In the context of this harsh reality, one can conclude that the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company represents a glimmer of hope for Nigerians. As one of the largest refineries in the world, located in Nigeria, the refinery has the potential to refine petroleum products locally, eliminating the need for costly imports that have reduced Nigeria to a “beggar nation” over the past decades.

Local production of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) could reduce pricing, as there would be no need to factor in high landing costs associated with fuel importation. The Dangote Refinery, at full capacity, will process 650,000 barrels of crude oil daily, making it competitive with the United States’ largest refinery and over 50% bigger than the largest refinery in Europe.

Although the refinery is intended to refine domestically produced crude to bolster the heavily oil-dependent local economy, which has been marked by crises in recent times, it also can refine foreign crude. While the exit of Shell Exploration Company and other major international oil companies from the domestic market may pose challenges for the Dangote Refinery in terms of crude oil supplies and achieving its goal of changing the narrative in the nation’s oil sector, it is also important to acknowledge that the sheer scale of the Dangote Refinery will nonetheless turn Nigeria into an “oil market juggernaut”.

According to a recent New York Times report, although the refinery has yet to debut in the domestic and international market space, the Dangote Refinery is already making waves in the global market and has affected major market indicators and determinants. Aliko Dangote, the billionaire Nigerian businessman who spearheaded the refinery’s construction and development, is well aware of the challenges facing the nation’s oil and gas sector.

He has repeatedly reiterated his commitment to driving the troubled sector towards efficiency and reliability. His mission is to make a positive impact on the capacity and fortunes of local refineries across the country. To many, including cynics who doubted that an individual could successfully build one of the world’s largest refineries, the knowledge of the refinery’s impact on the global energy index must have generated a highly positive response.

It is noteworthy that the Nigerian economy, which has experienced slow growth over the last 20 years, is set to witness a dramatic turnaround in the coming months. The positive impact of the Dangote Refinery on the nation’s economy will translate to a better standard of living for every Nigerian. It will reflect directly on Nigeria’s foreign reserve, reducing pressure on the Naira and stabilizing commodity and fuel prices.

Certainly, the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company is a game-changer for Nigeria, meeting domestic needs and producing a surplus for export. Already, the refinery has resumed production of high-quality Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), which is set to enter the domestic market. Aviation fuel and other products are expected to be rolled out into both domestic and international markets within September.

Candidly, Aliko Dangote has put many naysayers to shame. They were wondering how possible it would be for an individual to accomplish what a country or a continent could not achieve. In a nutshell, the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company symbolizes not only the strength and potential of Nigeria’s industry but also the dedication, patriotism, and vision of one of Nigeria’s most esteemed business leaders, Alhaji Dr. Aliko Dangote.

Therefore, it is succinctly true to admit with all sense of patriotism that although Aliko Dangote is not a saint, he has given Nigerians something to be proud of as a country. The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company may become what Toyota is to Japan and what Citroen is to France – a brand and a source of pride.

Agbese is an oil and gas expert based in Dundee, United Kingdom.

I was replying to my WhatsApp messages yesterday when a piece by one Wahab Oba, one of the former senate president Pastor Bukola Saraki’s minions, was shared across the groups I’m a member. Titled ‘AA, stop the shenanigans, leave the traditional rulers alone’, the article was a repeat of the lies against Governor Abdulrazaq Abdulrahman in the lead-up to the 2023 general elections that he ordered the traditional rulers in the state not to welcome members of the opposition parties to their palaces.

It was not long after the engine room of lies and propaganda in the state, Kwara People’s Democratic Party, PDP, shared the lie across social media platforms that his royal majesty Olofa of Offa Oba Mufutau Muhammed Gbadamosi Esuwoye II, debunked it and set the record straight. The revered monarch said Governor Abdulrazaq never ordered them to stop members of any political parties from coming to their palace to sell their candidacies. He said those who refused to welcome opposition parties did that at their volition.

The warped narrative in yesterday’s piece that the governor didn’t want the traditional rulers in the state to attend Saraki’s late mother’s burial ceremony was the recycling of the lie the PDP told in 2023. It’s only God who knows how the late Mrs Florence will be feeling on the other side of life right now after discovering that her beloved son and former governor has been using her passing to play his usual dirty politics. Is this how to pay a last respect to the deceased? Not. It’s only a child who does not respect their parents who bring them into political matters.

In the piece, the essayist also accused the governor of not showing sportsmanship because he didn’t personally visit the Sarakis and attend the burial ceremony. He mentioned some top members of the APC who visited him despite being in the opposition. However, he failed to acknowledge the fact that Governor Abdulrazaq was one of the first set of APC leaders who released statements to sympathise with the Sarakis a few hours after they announced the transition of their mother. What’s sportsmanship if not what the governor did?

Maybe Saraki and Wahab Oba wanted the governor to send all members of the State House of Assembly to the ceremony and empty Kwara’s treasury before they would know he cared. Sometimes, Saraki’s minions think others are as daft and deluded as them. Reading the article, I was expecting the author to mention how his paymaster paid a condolence visit to the family of his late predecessor, who he fought when he was alive and after his death. Instead, he went on to narrate how President Joe Biden and his family put a call through his archrival in the forthcoming presidential, Donald Trump, when the latter’s ear was shot by an assailant. Has Biden visited him?

Of course, Sarakites won’t commend AA for sympathising with the Sarakis via an emotional statement not until they review how their master has responded to the events of his political enemies including President Bola Tinubu who the writer said allowed his wife to pay a condolence visit to the bereaved in recent times. Since Saraki got his ‘wuru-wuru’ senate presidency which didn’t go down with many including Tinubu and the party, he has ignored anything that has his name on it. Just recently, President Tinubu celebrated his birthday and the ex-governor couldn’t wish him well. Or should we discuss how he disrespectfully ignored him at a certain event?

Mrs Florence is no more here with us and the best thing the former senate president and his siblings could have done for a loving mother was to organise a prayer session where people of her faith would beseech God to forgive her shortcomings and her among His beloved. Anything outside this is unnecessary. There is no point dragging the governor for not coming to pay your family a condolence visit when he had already shown sportsmanship by sympathising with your family in the open. A gesture you couldn’t extend when your predecessor passed on.

Muhammad, a political analyst, writes from Ilorin.