Gbajabiamila: House to Empower Lottery Commission to Boost Revenue

 

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, has said the House would empower the National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) through legislation to generate more revenue.

He stated this on Wednesday when the management of the commission led by the chairman of its board, Alhaji Ibikunle Fatai, paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja.

Gbajabiamila in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity,  Lanre Lasisi, said that the House was willing to come up with relevant laws that would make Nigeria generate more revenue to fund her annual budgets.

The Speaker ‎said: "On the amendment of the enabling law, of course, law is very dynamic. Anytime there’s a need to amend the law to optimise and maximise the efficiency and your revenue profile, we are going to be very willing and ready to do that. But we need to know what the problems are, where you need to plug the holes.”

‎Earlier, the Chairman of the commission's board, Fatai, said ‎the commission lacks enabling law to prosecute those lottery companies that don't pay taxes while appealing to the House to give the amendments accelerated passage.‎ 

Meanwhile, the Chairman of House Committee on Federal Road Mentainace Agency (FERMA), Olufemi Bamisile on has said that he was disturbed by a statement credited to the Minister of Power and Housing, Babatunde Fashola,  that the federal government would not refund money spent by state governors to repair federal roads traversing such state.

He stated this yesterday in Abuja during the committee's inaugural meeting.

He said: "The question is simple, does it mean that Nigeria's would not get any value for the various taxes they pay? Does it mean that Nigerians will continue to be exposed to dangers associated with our roads littered with gullies and potholes? The questions are endless and this committee must address this issue so that we can five good governance to our constituents and Nigerian as a whole".

 Bamisile called on the committee members to think out of the box in order to assist FERMA access over N 64 billion meant to come from a percentage of petroleum product sales.