Group Pushes Back on Edun, Adedeji’s Sack Calls
By Patience Ikpeme
The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Mr. Wale Edun and the Chairman of The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Zacch Adedeji, are being defended by a group named Guardian of Truth following public demands for their dismissal linked to unpaid government contractor obligations.
The group insisted on differenting the FIRS’s function of tax collection from the government’s responsibility for expenditure.
In a weekend statement, Guardian of Truth Spokesperson Mr. Clement Kolawole addressed the controversy ignited by a lawmaker and certain civil society organizations calling for the removal of the Finance Minister and the FIRS head. Kolawole dismissed the demand as “laughable,” arguing it betrayed a fundamental misunderstanding of the tax agency’s statutory role.
Kolawole stated that the FIRS’s mandate is solely focused on generating revenue for the nation. “The agency only assesses, collects and accounts for tax revenue due to the federation,” he stated. He insisted that the FIRS plays no part in the subsequent release of funds for government projects or settlements.
“FIRS is not involved in payment to contractors working for government as the agency only assesses, collects and accounts for tax revenue due to the federation,” Kolawole said, reiterating the distinct separation of duties.
The group was quick to cite the agency’s recent achievements, noting the “impressive tax revenue collection performance” under Adedeji’s leadership. Kolawole pushed back against any assumption that the increased revenue is held within the FIRS, emphasizing its immediate distribution through the Federation Account.
“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,” he clarified.
In an effort to provide context for the distribution of national funds, the spokesperson pointed out the FIRS’s crucial role as the nation’s primary revenue generator.
“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,” he said.
Kolawole also used the opportunity to connect the FIRS’s performance to broader governmental stability. He mentioned that the distributable FAAC has been on an upward swing since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, a development that “has been widely acknowledged” and has won the President “praise even from opposition elements for restoring fiscal stability to the country, including the sub-nationals.”
Guardian of Truth concluded by affirming the FIRS Chairman’s dedication to upcoming fiscal reforms, despite the distraction of the calls for his sack. According to Kolawole, Zacch Adedeji “remains focused on the serious job of ensuring the new tax laws bring huge reliefs to ordinary Nigerians and end to multiple taxes for businesses in the new year.”
He added: “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.”
