Nigeria’s revenues not stored in FIRS, Call for Zacch Adedeji’s sack distraction – Group
By Fola Ademosu
A group by the name ‘the Guardian of Truth’ has rejected the call for removal of the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Zacch Adedeji.
The group released a statement on Saturday, in response to the call for Adedeji, and the finance minister, Wale Edun’s sack by an unnamed lawmaker and his some civil society organisation hirelings over the Federal Government’s inability to pay local contractors.
In the statement, signed by its spokesperson Mr. Clement Kolawole, the group said that such agitation would not distract Adedeji from the serious job at hand, including ensuring that the new tax laws coming into effect from 2026 brings relief to the ordinary Nigerian and simultaneously puts a stop to the issue of multiple taxations affecting businesses.
Kolawole explains that, although the FIRS under Adedeji has recorded remarkable revenue accruals so far, the agency only collects but does not retain the taxation proceeds. He therefore describes the call for Adedeji’s removal as a misunderstanding of his mandate as the head of the country’s foremost revenue collecting agency (FIRS).
He said, “The fact that FIRS under Adedeji has consistently posted stellar revenue collection performance since assumption of office does not mean the money is warehoused in FIRS.
“The lawmaker of all people should know that about 70 per cent of what is shared monthly at the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) by federal, states and local government councils comes from FIRS.
“It is on record that distributable FAAC has been on upward swing since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in May 2023. This has been widely acknowledged and the President has won praise even from opposition elements for restoring fiscal stability to the country, including the sub-nationals.”
The group adds: “The FIRS chairman is not distracted by such a call and remains determined to ensure Nigerians and businesses fully harness the gains of the new tax laws kicking in January through fair and efficient tax administration.”
