Nigeria: The Tyranny of Tariffs, By Dr. Uche Akunebu 

“There is no worse tyranny than to force a man to pay for what he does not want merely because you think it would be good for him”.

• Robert A Heinlein ,American science fiction writer.

History is replete with stories of leaders that foisted a tyrannical environment during their reign . In the Christian holy Bible, we were saw the emergence of King Herod of Judea ,who was given to tyranny. When this King learnt of the birth of infant Jesus ,he made effort to kill him ,but ended up killing all the infants in Bethlehem .

Looking further into history ,the name Adolf Hitler pops up in studying tyrannical leadership. Driven by the delusion of the “master race” he eliminated, Jews ,Slavs ,Gypsies,homosexuals ,and political opponents at the concentration camps. About Eleven million people are said to have been dispatched to the world beyond by Adolf Hitler. 

Ivan IV Vasilyevich ,known in history as Ivan the terrible who ruled as the “Tsar of all Russia ” was another terror of a leader . When his wife Anastasia died in 1560,he developed mental imbalance, that led to his killing anyone perceived as a political enemy. 

Historical figures who foisted tyranny in their spheres of influence are inexhaustible, and that is not the focus of this essay ,but this writer have used the few examples to direct our minds to the evils of tyranny;which maims, kills, and subjects citizens to inhuman conditions, such as the tariffs considered too many in Nigeria, since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took over power.

In a simple language, tariff can be described as charge or charges on services or imports . It can also be described as a form of tax on goods and services . With the coming of president Ahmed Bola Tinubu, Nigerians have been vulnerable to the barrage of tariffs or taxes that have culminated into what one can simple refer to as “tyranny of tariffs “

For instance,on being sworn in as president on May 29,2023 ,President Ahmed Bola Tinubu, announced to the 
world the removal of oil subsidy ,triggering triple payments on what use to be the price of fuel in Nigeria. Paying more ,for the imported crude ,have led to huge holes on the pockets of majority of the population, battling with multi-dimensional poverty.  During the last fuel scarcity ,reports have it that some people in States in the North were paying for as high as two thousand naira per litre of fuel at the black market. Tell me ,what could be more outrageous than that?  Fuel available and not available, runs roughshod on the resources of Nigerians.

While Nigerians are bemoaning the high payment on fuel ,occasioned by the removal of the oil subsidy,  increase in electricity tariffs followed ,with Nigerians paying more for the “darkness” the electricity bodies are able to provide. To demonstrate that the increase in tariff is cruel ,the Nigerian Labour Congress, during the celebration of the workers day on May 1,2024 issued a two week ultimatum to the electricity authorities to reverse the price increase or face the wrath of the Labour Congress. 

Femi Falana , a senior advocate of Nigeria  (SAN) and a human right activist equally had called out the minister of power ,Mr Adebayo Adelabu ,for allowing a breach of the electricity Act on the increase of tariffs.

He posited that “section 116 of the Electricity Act 2023 provides that before an increase can be approved and announced, there has to be a public hearing conducted based on the request of the Discos to have an increase in the Electricity tariffs . That provision of the Act ,according to Falana was not followed. 

As Nigerians are still complaining about the Electricity tariffs that have continued to erode their resources and impoverish many ,the government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had issued a circular to financial institutions on a new cybersecurity levy 0.5 % on every electronic money transfers . A burden to be carried by the sender of the money and the receiver. 

The cybersecurity levy as proposed by the government has turned out to be one of the most controversial circular issued in Central Bank history in Nigeria,as it has generated a lot of condemnation from well meaning citizens .The presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, Mr Peter Obi ,is one of those that have raised serious concern on the monstrous levy .

Obi in his verified X handle was quoted as have penned his pain this way:

“The introduction of yet another tax ,in the form of cybersecurity levy,on Nigerians who are already suffering severe economic distress is further proof that the government is more interested in milking a dying economy instead of nurturing it to recovery and growth ” Obi bemoaned .

The Nigerian Labour Congress which last time issued the electricity bodies an ultimatum to reverse their taiff increase or face their wrath ,on the receipt of the news of the cybersecurity levy have through its official release rejected the levy .

The ever vocal Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability project (SERAP) equally have threatened to sue the federal government of Nigeria ,if it went ahead to implement the cybersecurity levy.  

Operating in an environment of heavy taxation ,some big corporate organisations have equally joined the “taxation or levy challenge ” as some of them have increased the prices of their goods and services in the country, thereby rendering Nigerians financial invalid in the process.

A case in point , was the price increase released by the Nigerian breweries around February this year. With the price increase ,we saw Gulder beer that was sold N700 before selling for N950, Star larger beer ,that was  700 ,selling for N950,Star larger beer ,which used to sell for N600 ,selling for N850. Heineken beer ,now sells for 1,300 ,Life beer, N850 and a bottle of Legend going for N 1,250. 

For beer lovers ,this is not the best of 
times ,as source of relaxation have been ,affected by taxation in the land .

As Nigerian brewery was done with its price increase ,the broadcasting company, Multi-choice also made its own decision to join the “tax and levy challenge ” as it has reviewed its of its packages across board .

With the latest price hike ,the Dstv premium package was increased from N29,500 to N37 ,00 ,while the Dstv compact went up from  N 19,800 to N 25,00 and the compact package increased from N12,500 to N15,700 .

More corporate organisations are likely to join the “tax or levy challenge ” in due course,at the expense of the ordinarily Nigerians .

The negative effects of the “tyranny of 
tariffs ” are numerous. For instance ,most people have vowed to boycott the electronic transfers ,if implemented.  If customers decides to go the way of Mazi Mbonu Ojike (of the boycott the boycottable fame) tell me what happens to the culture of cashless economy that most Nigerians have embraced ? Wouldn’t that mean returning to Egypt (to the old cash system) ? When that happens, the present government must have succeeded in helping to nail the coffin of cashless economy. 

As the “tyranny of tariffs ” continues an important area government neglects suffers ,and that is family harmony. Most families have been visited with storms that comes with the tariff increases ,and the peace of most of these families have flown out of the windows. Some women ,have left their husbands as a result of the hardship that comes with heavy taxation, that affected their financial fortunes. 

Productivity at work places have equally reduced ,as most workers in government and private offices,now selects days of going to work, as the five days or six days as they case might be ,can no longer work ,with dwindling financial fortunes .Tell me ,is government not shooting itself in the foot ,with the work force producing below expectations, as a result of taxation and levies that have become so many.

What about the increase in crime ? Most people have been pushed into all kinds of crime ,just to remain to secure the next meal and provide for their families. As government think of fighting crime with modern equipment, would it be nice they think of economic policies that are fueling crime and deal with it? 

The government of president Ahmed Bola Tinubu, should know that his democratic credentials will be wiped away ,if the “tyranny of tariffs ” under his administration is not addressed headlong to save the masses from untold hardship ,and it to his interest that he instructs his economic team ,to look for more creative ways of reviving our economy, than making citizens gasp for breath, in the name of tariffs and levies .

Dr Uche Akunebu, is the Head of poets of the world (Poets del Mundo) Nigerian chapter, and Editor of the human rights 
arts Festival based in New York.