A former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has said that the disposition of many Nigerians towards tax payments is an indication that they do not want good governance.
He said in this a Facebook post on Tuesday.
According to Omokri, Nigerians like to compare their country with what they see abroad without doing what citizens of the other nations do.
He said that tax is the European and American governments’ main income source which enables them to provide amenities for their citizens which Nigerians envy.
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“Nigerians like to compare Nigeria with what we see abroad. In Europe and America the government’s main income is tax.
“How many Nigerians pay tax? And even the small percentage who do pay tax pay some of the most ridiculously low taxes on Earth. Yet we want good roads, power, security and free quality education. In fact, want is an understatement. We demand it! Who will pay for it? What some Nigerians want is communism, not good governance!
“Nigeria was an oil rich country in 1966 when our population was 50 million. In 2023, with a population of 211 million and oil income of $30 billion annually, we are an oil poor nation.
“To put things in perspective, the budget of the New York Police Department for 2022 was $11 billion. Research it.
“In England, if you earn £60,000 per annum, you are paying £18,000 tax. That is why England is developed. Tax Nigerians like that and expect #EndSARS protest!
“Yet, we expect our government to deliver England level development. We are as much a problem as our government.
“Many Nigerians talk so ignorantly and can’t even be enlightened. Before you talk, they will say Nigeria is richer than even Western countries because of our oil ‘wealth’.
“No nation with a large population has ever become rich because of only mineral resources. Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world. Please research it. Yet, they are poorer than Nigeria. And their population is just 15% of our population. Nigeria is not oil rich. We are oil poor!”