Makinde pledges tax relief for entrepreneurs, renews NLNG dividend challenge

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has promised tax breaks for entrepreneurs if elected president in 2027, arguing that private businesses need room to expand and create jobs.

Makinde, the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) candidate, made the pledge at the party’s South-South town hall in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, on Tuesday, 20 October. He said government spending alone could not deliver the employment and growth Nigeria needed.

He pointed to Oyo State’s internally generated revenue, which he said had risen during his administration without an increase in taxes. Makinde said his proposed RESET agenda would extend that approach by encouraging entrepreneurship and productive investment.

The governor criticised the Tinubu administration’s tax reforms, contending that the burden was falling on Nigerians with little capacity to pay. The Presidency has defended the reforms as measures designed to protect low- and middle-income earners.

Makinde also renewed his claim that nearly ₦250 billion in Nigeria LNG dividends was due to each state over several years. He asked the Federal Government to disclose the amounts paid into the Federation Account and how they had been distributed. Makinde said federal authorities had challenged the claim; he insisted he was referring to cumulative payments rather than a single disbursement. The amount due to each state remains disputed.

He linked his campaign programme to education and security, including efforts to address militancy in the Niger Delta. APM vice-presidential candidate Lawal Daura said the party’s plans also covered the economy and public welfare. Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed, an APM leader, urged voters to judge candidates by their records rather than age or campaign spending.

The Uyo meeting followed earlier APM town halls in northern regions as the party sought support ahead of the 2027 election.

Image credit: Oduola Matthew via Wikimedia Commons, cropped by WikiBunny2K1, CC BY-SA 4.0. File photo of Governor Makinde.

Source: Punch / TheCable