FIA Team Seeks Upward Review Of #800,000 Threshold For PWDs

A group under the aegis of Fight Inequality Alliance, FIA, wants the National Assembly to review upward the #800,000 tax threshold for Persons With Disabilities, PWDs in the tax reform bill before it.

One of the FIA Team members, Comrade Gideon Adeyeni made the call during a town hall meeting with PWDs in Abuja.

He explained that placing the taxable threshold of citizens at #800, 000 is tantamount to taxing poverty, hence the need for upward review of the tax threshold for all citizens, in view of the current economic realities, especially for PWDs.

According to Comrade Adeyeni it is also important that there is deduction in the income tax of parents and legal guardians of PWDs because it takes extra costs and efforts to care for Persons With Disabilities.

“The threshold of taxable income for persons with disabilities should not be the same with other members of the society.The threshold of taxable income for all citizens is set at #800,000.”

“Also, we are saying that the goods and services that are exclusively used by persons with disabilities, like crouches, wheelchairs, hearing and learning aids, should be tax exempted”.

“We are calling for the ongoing tax reform to make provisions for persons with disabilities.We are asking for tax exemptions and relieve to be provided for persons with disabilities within the law.” Adeyeni said.

Another FIA member, Eno Sandra Uyebi, maintained that PWDs, the poor and vulnerable, should be given tax waivers, while SuperRich and Billionaires should be made to pay higher taxes.

“How much tax do billionaires pay? Just 0.3℅ of their wealth. Compare that with a rice trader in northern, eastern Nigeria, in Uganda who pays 40℅ and elsewhere in the world… Also, know this, if 16 richest people in the world loses 99℅ of their wealth overnight, they are still going to be billionaires,” Uyebi said.

On her part, JONAPWD FCT Women leader, Ambassador Mube Awala Beatrice pointed out that PWDs need a lot of resources to take care of themselves educationally and health wise

“There should be tax rebate for PWDs, especially on health insurance and tax waiver on assistive devices”.

Also, Comrade Iroh Faithful used the medium to appeal to the Federal Government to reduce the financial burden of PWDs by offering the vulnerable people living with disabilities benefits like free healthcare, free electricity, subsidized communications tariffs among others.

According to Comrade Faithful, “this approach will foster fairness, ensuring equitable support for vulnerable groups and balancing societal disparities between the wealthy and the less privileged.”

Other PWDs that attended the town hall meeting were seen carrying placards with inscriptions such as : “Tax the SuperRich, Not the Poor”, “Tax Justice,” and “Tax Billionaires” among others.

Remi Johnson, Edited By Grace Namiji