Makinde promises tax breaks for businesses, stands by ₦250bn NLNG claim

Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has promised tax breaks for entrepreneurs if he becomes president in 2027, and he is standing by his claim that the Federal Government has withheld about ₦250bn in Nigeria LNG dividends owed to states.

Makinde, who is the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), spoke at the party's South-South town hall meeting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, on Tuesday.

He said his administration in Oyo State raised internally generated revenue without raising taxes, and that a federal government under him would encourage entrepreneurs in the same way.

"We will ensure that people have tax breaks," he said, adding that government alone cannot create the jobs Nigeria needs.

Tax law and the NLNG money

Makinde criticised the Federal Government's tax reforms, saying they target poor Nigerians instead of wealth. He quoted Senator Ireti Kingibe's recent remark that the new tax law is not consistent with productivity.

"You are supposed to tax wealth. You are not supposed to tax poverty," he said.

The Presidency has repeatedly said the reforms are meant to protect low- and middle-income earners.

On the Nigeria LNG dividends, Makinde said the money paid into the Federation Account should be shared among the Federal Government, states and local governments as the Constitution requires. He said he was not talking about a one-off payment but about years of dividends, including under the current administration.

He said the Federal Government had told him to be careful about saying things that are not true, and he did not back down. "I stand by what I have said. The records are there," he said, asking the government to provide the amounts meant for states and local governments.

The APM's National Leader and Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, told the crowd that voters, especially young people and women, should judge candidates by their record rather than by money or age.

He said Makinde has the vision and experience to tackle Nigeria's problems.

The party's vice-presidential candidate, Lawal Daura, said the APM's RESET agenda covers education, the economy, security and welfare, and is meant to give Nigerians a dignified life.

The Uyo meeting drew party leaders and delegates from Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Edo, Cross River and Bayelsa states. The party has already held similar meetings in the North-Central, North-West and North-East.

What happens next

The APM is one of several parties hoping to unseat President Bola Tinubu in 2027. For ordinary Nigerians, the promises that matter most will be those on taxes, fuel prices and jobs.

Makinde's ₦250bn claim is likely to stay in the news, with the Federal Government yet to publish the figures he is asking for.