Lagos State Deputy Governor and All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Obafemi Hamzat, has promised to end multiple taxation and introduce a single payment system for residents and businesses if elected governor in 2027.
He also pledged to establish a complaint centre where taxpayers can report illegal collections and receive responses within 48 hours.
Hamzat made the promises on Friday at a town hall meeting organised by BusinessDay, where he presented his plans for improving tax collection in the state.
He said the Lagos government was working to harmonise its tax system with the Federal Government's reforms, which reduced the number of recognised taxes and levies to nine categories.
“What Lagos State is doing, I agree with you, my brother, is now harmonising it.
“Because the Constitution and the Supreme Court’s ruling that the local governments are a separate government.
“So that’s the ruling of the land,” he said.
He added, “Therefore, what we are doing is to harmonise.
“Talk to local government and make sure that that nine is what is harmonising.”
Hamzat said residents and business owners should know exactly what they were expected to pay without facing additional demands after making the required payments.
He recalled a woman asking him to provide a clear list of her tax obligations.
“Now, a woman told me when I was going, I said, let me just know what I need to pay.
"If I pay, leave me alone.
“I think that’s a fair request and I intend to honour it,” he said.
He further promised that any levy not included in the approved tax schedule would not be collected.
The proposal comes amid efforts to address multiple taxation, illegal roadside collections and harassment of traders and transporters across Nigeria.
The Joint Revenue Board said in October that 21 states had adopted the harmonised tax law designed to streamline revenue collection into nine categories.
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