…says levy anti-people, calls for immediate reversal
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State has condemned the introduction of entertainment taxes by the state government, describing the policy as anti-people, ill-conceived, and insensitive to the economic realities of residents.
The opposition party urged Governor Seyi Makinde to immediately suspend the policy, which reportedly compels organisers and sponsors of social events to pay varying sums to obtain government permits.
Reports of the new levy emerged on Wednesday after a printed sticker circulated across the state indicated different charges for event categories. Phone calls made to the contact numbers on the sticker were confirmed by officials who validated the information.
In a statement issued on Wednesday and made available to journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo APC Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, also lauded the Federal Government over its recent move to recover landed properties allegedly hijacked and sold by the Makinde administration since 2019.
“The recent public announcement by the Federal Ministry of Housing, directing Governor Makinde and the Oyo State Government to vacate federal lands and properties in Ibadan and Saki, has vindicated our party,” Sadare said.
He alleged that the development exposed the governor’s complicity in several cases of land grabbing involving properties belonging to government agencies, private individuals, and corporate organisations.
“The public will recall that our party warned against the unlawful takeover of lands belonging to ARCEDEM, NIHORT, and Radio Nigeria, among others, in Ibadan. Now that the Federal Government has intervened, we expect full compliance with its directive. None of those encroachments was in the overriding public interest,” the statement added.
On the new entertainment tax, the APC said the policy would further worsen the hardship faced by citizens who are already burdened by multiple levies.
“The introduction of entertainment taxes at this time is akin to pushing citizens to the wall,” the statement read. “With the current economic challenges, people try to find happiness and relief through social gatherings. Imposing taxes on such events is both unreasonable and inhumane.”
The party added that civil servants, artisans, traders, and commercial transport operators — including bus, motorcycle, and tricycle drivers — are already overtaxed by the state government.
“Instead of bringing comfort to the people, the Makinde administration keeps creating new avenues to exploit them,” Sadare said. “We call on the governor to rescind the entertainment tax policy immediately and focus on measures that will genuinely ease the burdens of governance on the people.”
