Supol Bello Taofik, Ebute-Ero Police Division Crimes officer, Com. Buna, HURMA’s Executive Director, Barr. Olalekan Matti, member of HURMA’s Legal Team, Alhaja Dada Toyin Aisha Abiose and Others, During The Inauguration of Ebute-Ero Unit of HURMA On Thursday
HURMA Decries Multiple Taxation, Govt Insensitivity To Traders
The Human Rights Monitoring Agenda (HURMA) has decried series of taxs and levies imposed on traders of the popular Ebute-Ero market, Lagos Island, Lagos State.
To this end, the HURMA’s leaderships, has called on both the Lagos State government to address the issue, as raised by the traders in the market.
The appeal was made on Thursday, at a stakeholder’s meeting held to flag the inauguration of Ebute-Ero Unit of the group.
The guest speaker at the event, Barrister Lekan Matti, a member of HURMA’s legal team while presenting his paper on the topic “Fundamental Rights and The Challenges of Multiple Taxation in a Post-Covid Era”, made this appeal on behalf of the market people who had earlier complained on how governments, both at the state and Local levels, is making life unbearable for them.
Barrister Matti, who also spoke on the Constitutional rational behind Fundamental Human Rights of every Nigerian citizen and how it goes alone with obligation to the growth of the nation, asked the Lagos State government to reduce taxes and levies been paid by the traders, which he said will be seeing as a COVID-19 palliatives.
In his speech, HURMA’s Executive Director, Comrade Buna Olaitan Isiak before presentation of certificate of inauguration to the unit executives, also decried the exploitative methodologies of the government and the need to work closely with the local government and ensure transparency and accountability to the people whose resources they are managing.
The Unit’s Coordinator, Alhaja Dada Toyin Aisha Abiose, appeal for reduction in tax request by both the local government and the state.
“We Marketers are facing many challenges in Ebute-Ero. Some of us bought a shop for 25 years but a developer came with the knowledge of same local government after 10 years and request to renovate. Moreso, every one must also pay N1m urgently at once otherwise you loose the ownership of same shop whose you are supposed to own for 25 years.
“More so, we pay tenement rates; land-used charged among others and this is to even be paid full in COVID-19 situation that we operate a one-day-on one-day-off.We are appealing to the government to please be sensitive to our plight”.
Representative of the Ebute-Ero Police Divisional, Mr. Bello Taofik, the division’s Crimes Officer (DCO) encouraged the masses to see police as their friends and assist them in preventing and fighting all sorts of crime.
