The Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), has pledged to increase the size of revenue shared by the three tiers of government in the next five years.
The reappointed RMAFC Chairman, Mr Elias Mbam, made the pledge in Abuja on Monday at an inaugural meeting with the new Commissioners representing the 36 states and the FCT.
Mbam said that his focus during his second tenure would be to ensure the diversification of the economy and as well as ensure that all sectors contribute more to the growth of the nation’s economy.
The RMAFC boss said that the Commission would also review the remuneration of political office holders in the country to reflect the current economic realities.
“We are not going to leave any of the items in our mandate. We are going to address all issues in the mandate.
“And that is why we are going to be more concerned with increasing the size of the different sources of revenue rather than fight and dissipate energy over sharing of revenue that is getting smaller,’’ he said.
Mbam said that the nation’s revenue sharing formula, which determines how much of the revenue generated goes to the federal, state and local governments, would be revisited.
He recalled that in 2015, the Commission conducted a nationwide consultation with key stakeholders and came up with a new revenue sharing formula which was presented to the President.
“However, nothing has been heard of it. The then President did not present it to the National Assembly to be passed as law,” he said
Mbam said that the issue would be revisited and the new commissioners would be further briefed so they could advise on the best possible way forward.
According to the RMAFC boss, the revenue formula has not been rejected. It is inconclusive.
President Muhammadu Buhari had on Thursday inaugurated board of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission.
Thirty commissioners were inaugurated by the President, with Mr Elias Mbam reappointed chairman for a second term.
Some of the Commissioners include the former Acting Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Mr Kabir Mash, Mr Rilwan Abarchi, Chris Akomas, Ayang Okon, Chima Okafor, Prof. Isa Mohammed, and Patrick Mgbebu among others.
