Nigeria loses N3tr yearly to oil tax avoidance, says Agbakoba

• Warns of looming hunger riot

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Olisa Agbakoba, yesterday, alleged that the country is losing N3 trillion yearly (approximately 15 per cent of the national budget) due to tax avoidance practices within the oil and gas sector, which is the lifeblood of the Nigerian economy.
 
He told newsmen that this whopping tax avoidance within the sector could cripple the nation’s economic growth and development.
   
“Oil rig companies have formed a cartel for tax avoidance, with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) confirming they do not collect tax from oil rigs. This represents a massive loss of potential government revenue,” he said.
   
The senior partner at Olisa Agbakoba Legal added that the practice of tax avoidance by companies creates an uneven playing field and discourages compliant companies, further alleging that corruption in the allocation of oil blocks, award of contracts, and distribution of oil revenues has eroded public trust.
   
He, therefore, urged the government to implement stricter regulations and penalties for tax avoidance in the industry, while strengthening NIMASA’s capacity to collect taxes from oil rig companies through training, technology adoption, and increased resources.
   
On revenue increase, Agbakoba said with improved efficiency, transparency and local participation, Nigeria could potentially increase its oil and gas revenue by 30-40 per cent within five to 10 years translating to an additional $15-20 billion annually based on current production levels.
 
“Strict enforcement of local content laws and capacity-building initiatives could increase Nigerian companies’ participation in the industry from the current estimated 30 to 70 per cent within 10 years.
 
“In addition to local content development, there should be a deliberate strategy to headhunt the best talents in the world to ensure that Nigeria’s participation in the oil and gas industry increases from the current 30 per cent to 70 per cent in the next 3 years,” he said
   
The legal expert also bemoaned Nigeria’s public debt rising to $91.46 billion (N121.67 trillion), despite its ability to generate $ 1 trillion in 40 years.
 
He said: “Over the past 40 years, the cumulative revenue from oil and gas has exceeded $1 trillion, an amount that should have been sufficient to transform the nation’s economy and infrastructure. Yet, Nigeria consistently resorts to borrowing, with the total public debt standing at N121.67 trillion ($91.46 billion) as of March 31, 2024, according to the Debt Management Office.”
   
He warned that a hunger riot might soon break out in the country. According to him, most Nigerians could not afford food due to extreme poverty, despite the nation’s enormous oil and gas resources which, according to him, have been hijacked by foreigners.
   
Agbakoba maintained that Nigeria as a nation should avoid a situation where the masses would be pushed to the point of taking to the streets as a result of hunger. He noted that hungry people could resort to entering people’s houses and shops in broad daylight to cart away food items.