PWDs urge Tinubu to reduce VAT

President Bola Tinubu has been called by the Accelerate Disability Inclusion in Emergencies Forum to reduce the value-added tax from 7.5% to 5% by September 2023.

According to ADIE, limiting future increases in current taxes, tariffs, and fees as well as the introduction of new ones will raise Nigerians’ purchasing power, especially that of those with disabilities.

The price of premium motor spirit, also known as fuel, increased significantly after the Federal Government ended its subsidies on May 29, 2023.

According to the organisation, the removal of fuel subsidies had severely harmed Nigerians’ socioeconomic conditions, especially those in vulnerable demographics like women, young people, and people with disabilities who combined made up more than 80% of the estimated 216 million people who called the nation home.

The group urged the President to ensure that the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act was fully implemented, particularly the five percent employment quota for PWDs, during a press conference on Monday in Abuja. The group was led by its Chairman, Grace Jerry, and Vice-Chairman, Christian Agbo.

Jerry’s speech, which concentrated on the detrimental effects of the Federal Government’s policy of eliminating fuel subsidies on Nigerians, particularly PWDs, stated that “the Federal Government should reverse the Value Added Tax from 7.5 to five by September 2023 and stop further increases in existing taxes, tariffs, and duties, as well as the introduction of new ones, for the following year to increase the purchasing power of Nigerians, especially PWDs.”

“The Federal Government should make sure that the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act is fully implemented, especially the 5% employment quota for PWDs, and it should encourage employers in both the public and private sectors to implement workforce inclusion initiatives for people with disabilities, such as work-from-home options, flexible schedules, accessible workplaces, etc.