The Chairman, Caretaker Committee, PDP, Ekiti, Hon. Dare Adeleke, has said described Oyebanji’s new laws on road users as draconian and a means to shore up funds for his campaign. Adeleke made these pronouncement in a statement released on Thursday.
The statement reads:
Governor Biodun Oyebanji has once again demonstrated a gross disregard for the plight of the people he governs.
His new tax drive is, at best, draconian. Hiding under the guise of security, Oyebanji has devised yet another devious means to siphon funds into his desperate campaign to retain his seat as Governor of Ekiti State.
While other governors are focused on delivering good governance as a pathway to re-election or leaving behind lasting legacies, Oyebanji appears solely preoccupied with increasing the burden on the people; fleecing them of the little they have, all in pursuit of an election victory he is unlikely to achieve, given his poor track record.
Let us examine the new Road Tax Enforcement Programme, where he emphasized that “compliance is KEY”… a clear indication that enforcement will be forceful and aggressive. This initiative, seemingly introduced under the State’s Internal Revenue Service (EKIRS), also states that the IRS will work alongside security agencies to implement a law that should not, by any standard, fall within the purview of such agencies.
Why should federal security bodies such as the Nigerian Police, FRSC, NSCDC, and others be deployed at the behest of a governor to enforce an oppressive tax regime on the people of Ekiti State?
What authority does the EKIRS have to stop motorists from carrying out their normal duties? What business do they have with drivers’ licenses, roadworthiness certificates, unregistered vehicles, unauthorized or covered license plates? On what legal basis can they impound vehicles until a three-year tax certificate is obtained from the state? Since when did they become enforcers of vehicular infractions?
It appears the APC-led government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is complicit in these nefarious activities, enabling federal officers to participate in unlawful operations in collaboration with state governments like Ekiti.
If this continues unchecked, it will set a dangerous precedent. Other states may soon follow suit, double-taxing citizens to swell the campaign coffers of their failing governors. No one should be surprised if tomorrow the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) takes to the streets, performing the roles of the VIO or FRSC. These are the bizarre realities we are beginning to witness in Tinubu’s Nigeria, starting with this tax misadventure in Ekiti State.
I urge all Ekiti people to stand firm and resist this oppressive tax enforcement measure by the Oyebanji administration. Until he withdraws his agents from the roads, he must not be allowed to further exploit the sweat and tears of the Ekiti people in his quest for a second term.
If he’s so determined to secure another term, he should go to Aso Villa and get it from Tinubu, not from the hard-earned resources of the people he has already failed.
