Finance
Why Buhari warned Osinbajo over ‘Tradermoni’


BY: Oliseama Okwuchukwu
President Muhammadu Buhari, Monday night, in Abuja, disclosed how he warned Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo against being mobbed by ‘hefty’ traders while distributing ‘trader moni’ in the market.
The President, who made this disclosure while hosting the Vice-President and other prominent government officials when breaking fast in the State House, said when he saw some of the market women confronting him, he had to warn him to be careful because he didn’t want anything bad to happen to him.
Buhari, who described the ‘Tradermoni’ initiative by Osinbajo as very good, also disclosed that he was first reluctant to buy the idea but had to succumb later when the vice-president insisted.
However, the president said he later found that Osinbajo was ahead of him in thinking when he saw the success of the programme, which he said attracted many people to the government and consequently made him to be pleased with the vice-president.
“This ‘Marketmoni’, I warned the vice-president. I don’t like him to be mobbed, especially the way I see hefty women coming and confronting him, he should be very careful.
“These are very good initiatives. Initially, I was quite reluctant but I must admit that they are very good programmes and they endear this government to a lot of poor people because of these N5,000 or N10,000 being given to them as loans.
“They are fantastic programmes and I have to admit quite honestly that the vice-president was ahead of me by insisting on them. But he knows me. If he insists, I will say, ‘okay, go and do what you like.’ He did it and I’m very pleased as he is being very successful,”’ Buhari said.
Buhari also lamented the spate of poverty in the country, saying whenever he drove around the country and saw the degree of prevalent poverty in the land, he was always upset by the appearances of poor people, the almajiris, whom he said went about with bowls, looking for what to eat.
According to him, for such poverty-stricken Nigerians, education is a luxury, pointing out that the elite including himself were failing by their inability to put in place certain programmes that could guarantee basic education for the people irrespective of the level of their poverty.
Against this background, Buhari commended Osinbajo whom he said initiated the school feeding programme, adding that as a result of the programme, enrolment of pupils in schools has improved.
The President also lamented that some Nigerians have no sense of compassion and so do not care about what happens to others.
“When I drive around the country, what upsets me very much is the status of our poor people in this country. You see young people, the so-called almajiris with torn dresses, with plastic bowls. They are looking basically for what to eat.
“The question of education (to them) is a luxury. I think Nigerian elite, we are all failing because I think we should have a programme that will at least guarantee some basic education for our people no matter how poor they are.
“So, I welcome the vice-president’s initiate of the school feeding programme. If you check in your localities, the enrolment into schools improved because a lot of children can get at least one good meal a day. This is the position of this country.
“But, culturally some of us are quite merciless. We don’t care about what happens to others. We just keep on moving forward,” the president submitted.
Also speaking at the event, Osinbajo thanked the president for inviting him and other members of the cabinet, saying irrespective of their religious backgrounds, Nigerians must continue to be their brothers’ keepers.
The vice-president then proceeded to highlight some features of Ramadan which he said he knew in the past but appear to have changed now.
He said: “Mr President I must say that there are some reasons I had always look forward to the Ramadan session. But some of those reasons are now being seriously challenged.
“The first of those reasons is that during the Ramadan, meetings are usually very short. But, unfortunately last Wednesday, Mr. President seemed to have destroyed that very good notion by taking us through the longest FEC meeting in the history of the Federal Executive Council.
“So, we shouldn’t expect anymore that meeting will necessary be short during the Ramadan. The second is that some of my friends are far less troublesome during the Ramadan. People like Lai Mohammed, Abba Kyari, Adamu Adamu they are usually very well behaved during the Ramadan. But I’m not even sure that that is true anymore.
“So, I think that all we can truly expect now from the session is possibility what it was meant to do which is to remind us of some of our responsibilities to ourselves as brothers and to our fellow men/women especially our roles as leaders.
“I think it is auspicious that this particular Ramadan falls at the eve of the new term in office. So, it is an opportunity for us to remind ourselves over the core mandates which is the welfare and security of majority of our people.”’
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele; the Director-General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Alhaji Yakubu Ibn Muhammed; and the Chairman, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, Abdullahi Mukhtar, were among the dignitaries at the event.
Source: THISDAY
Finance
Tinubu Launches Personal Income Tax Calculator to Improve Compliance, Fairness
By ORJI ISRAEL


President Bola Tinubu has launched a Personal Income Tax Calculator to help Nigerians work out their tax obligations under the new tax law.
The tool is expected to make compliance easier and improve transparency in the system.
In a post on his X page, the president said the calculator shows how the recent reforms protect low-income earners while ensuring fairness.
“A fair tax system must never punish poverty or weigh down the most vulnerable. With the new tax laws I recently signed, taking effect from January 2026, we have lifted this burden and created a path of equity, fairness, and true redistribution in our economy,” Tinubu said.
Some months ago, he signed four major tax bills into law to bring Nigeria’s scattered tax system under one framework. These include the Nigeria Tax Administration Law, which sets out a uniform process for tax administration across federal, state, and local governments; the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, which replaces the current Federal Inland Revenue Service Act with a stronger, more independent revenue agency; and the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) and Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill, which creates a formal structure for cooperation between revenue bodies at all levels.
The introduction of the tax calculator, together with these reforms, is expected to reduce confusion for both individuals and businesses, while also making it easier for them to meet their obligations and contribute to national growth.
Tinubu added that the reforms are part of building renewed hope for the economy and urged Nigerians to trust in the country’s future for themselves and their families.


The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) says that no fewer than 1,000 companies, representing 20% of total eligible firms, have begun integrating its newly launched electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) system less than two weeks after it went live.
The FIRS e-invoicing platform, which went live on August 1, 2025, after a successful pilot phase that began in November 2024, was designed to modernise Nigeria’s tax administration, curb evasion, and enhance transparency in revenue generation. It also provides the FIRS with real-time visibility into commercial transactions, ensuring authenticity and completeness of invoices.
According to a statement by Dare Adekanmbi, special adviser on Media to FIRS Chairman Zacch Adedeji, at least 1,000 companies, representing 20% of more than 5,000 eligible firms, have already adopted the system and begun integrating with the FIRS platform.
Adekanmbi noted that the initiative, also known as the Merchant-Buyer Model, will be rolled out in phases. “Large taxpayers, which are companies with annual turnover of N5 billion and more, are expected to be the first to be onboarded on the platform,” he said.
FIRS revealed that MTN Nigeria was the first taxpayer to transmit live electronic invoices to the platform, while Huawei Nigeria and IHS Nigeria have concluded test transmissions and are expected to go live soon.
The agency added that the initial compliance deadline of August 1, 2025, has been extended by three months to accommodate companies currently facing onboarding challenges. The new deadline is now November 1, 2025.
Finance
NGX Boss, Umaru Kwairanga, to Chair Business Journal Fintech Roundtable 2025
By Our Correspondent


Dr. Umaru Kwairanga, Group Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX) will Chair the 2nd Business Journal Fintech & Financial Inclusion Roundtable 2025 scheduled for Friday, August 29, 2025 at Oriental Hotel, Lekki, Lagos. Time is 10-am prompt.
The theme of the Roundtable is: Fintech & Financial Inclusion: The Opportunities & Challenges for Nigeria.
In a statement, Prince Cookey, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Business Journal Media Group said the choice of Umaru Kwairanga to chair the event is a reflection of his immense and chequered journey in the Nigerian economic system over the years.
“Dr. Umaru Kwairanga is a noted player in the Nigerian economy and financial services sector. Over the years, he has carved a positive niche in driving the narrative in national policy formulation, implementation and review. He remains a worthy point of reference and role model to current and future players in the Nigerian economy.”
Alhaji (Dr.) Umaru Kwairanga, Sarkin Fulani Gombe and Group Chairman, Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), is a notable player in the Nigerian corporate world, a thorough-bred professional and a prominent community leader in Gombe State and the North East region.
He has served at the highest levels of the banking, pension, investment, manufacturing and commercial sectors of Nigeria’s economy. He is the current Chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group Plc, Nigeria’ oldest stock exchange and also Chairman of Tangerine General Insurance Limited.
The NGX Chairman is also a Director on the Boards of First Bank Senegal Limited, Tangerine Apt Pensions Limited and the Group Managing Director of Finmal Finance Services Limited.
He is a past Chairman of Ashaka Cement plc and previously served on the Boards of Jaiz Bank Plc, Central Securities Clearing System Plc, Lafarge Africa Plc and First Bank Mortgages Limited to mention a few.
Professionally, Alhaji Kwairanga is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers, Chartered Institute of Directors of Nigeria, the Certified Pension Institute of Nigeria and the Abuja Commodities and Securities Exchange.
He is also a Council Member of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers; the Chartered Institute of Directors and he is the current President of the Certified Pensions Institute of Nigeria.
Kwairanga is a holder of the prominent traditional title of Sarkin Fulani Gombe and has led several initiatives for peace and development in Gombe State and the North East region in general.
He has also been involved in policy and strategy formulation in the public sector as a Member of the Vision 2020 Committee, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Nigerian Industrial Revolution Plan and several committees of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
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