Politics
Hotel Licence Bill RSHA Cautions Against Multiple Taxation Of Investors
Members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have called for a critical look at the proposed bill on the establishment of state hotel licence agency to avoid multiple taxations that would chase away investors in the state.
The lawmakers made their views known during the debate on the state Hotel Licence Bill, 2009 after it passed its second reading at the floor of the House, last Wednesday.
The lawmakers were of the opinion that having a hotel licence agency in the state would make the state’s law on tourism development ineffective, adding that the Tourism Bill passed by the House had already captured the intention of the proposed bill as well as the interest of the state in that regard.
Taken lead on the debate, Hon. Golden Chioma, (Etche I) while commending the sponsor of the bill for his courage, observed that page 19 of the bill if passed into law would create a difficult environment for hotel operators in the state.
According to him, the N1 million proposed charge imposed per room annually for five star hotels would adversely affect the operators of the business in the state, adding that the bill would not encourage the tourism programme of the present administration.
“Section 19 of the bill if passed into law, would make some hotels in the state like the Presidential Hotel not to be in existence. We are supposed to encourage investors and not to chase them out. The one million naira charges as proposed in this bill would make hotel business in the state a difficult one”, he stated.
He therefore, urged his colleagues to take a second look at the matter so as to encourage business sustainability in the state.
Also speaking, Hon. Henry Ogiri (Abua/Odual), Tamunosisi Gogo Jaja (Opobo/Nkoro) and Hon. Maureen Tamuno (Ogu/Bolo) stated that multiple taxes through the establishment of the licence agency would discourage hotel business as well as affect tourism development in the state.
The lawmakers suggested that relevant agencies and authorities should be consulted before passing the bill into law, so as to avoid unnecessary levies and taxes to be imposed on hotel operators as doing otherwise was capable of crippling hotel business activities in the state.
They also urged the House to tarry a while before passing the bill into law, adding that before a hotel was established in any state, it must pass a registration process through the National Tourism Development Board.
However, in their own views, Hon Chidi Lloyd (Emohua), sponsor of the bill and Hon. Hope Ikiriko (Ahoada West) explained that the essence of the bill was to document customers that check into hotels in the state.
The lawmakers were of the opinion that most of the crimes in the state were been perpetrated by some people who checked into various hotels in the state and carry out their nefarious activities without being noticed.
They opined that the bill when passed into law would promote sanity in hotel operations in the state. The lawmakers pleaded with their colleagues to give the bill the support it deserved so that the state would benefit from the intention of the bill.
In his ruling, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Tonye Harry who presided over the session, thanked the lawmakers for their contributions during the debate.
Hon Harry while committing the bill into the committee state directed the House Committee on Commerce and Industry chaired by Hon. Emmanuel Okatta to ensure that all the sentiments raised by the lawmakers on the bill were taken into consideration.
Anita Aluka
The Senate yesterday received the 2026-2028 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper from President Bola Tinubu, marking the formal launch of the 2026 federal budget cycle.
In a letter addressed to the upper chamber, Tinubu said the submission complies with statutory requirements and sets out the fiscal parameters that will guide the preparation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
He explained that the MTEF/FSP outlines the macroeconomic assumptions, revenue projections, and spending priorities that will shape Nigeria’s fiscal direction over the next three years.
The letter was read during plenary by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North), who urged lawmakers to expedite consideration of the document.
“It is with pleasure that I forward the 2026 to 2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper for the kind consideration and approval of the Senate.
“The 2026 to 2028 MTEF and FSP were approved during the Federal Executive Council meeting of December 3, 2025, and the 2026 budget of the Federal Government will be prepared based on the parameters and fiscal assumptions therein,” the President stated.
Last week, the Federal Executive Council approved the fiscal projections, pegging the oil benchmark price at $64.85 per barrel and adopting a budget exchange rate of ?1,512/$1 for 2026—figures expected to significantly shape revenue forecasts and expenditure planning.
After reading the President’s letter, Jibrin referred the document to the Senate Committee on Finance, chaired by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), with a directive to submit its report by Wednesday, December 17.
The Senate adjourned shortly after to allow committees to commence scrutiny of the fiscal framework and continue the ongoing screening of ambassadorial nominees.
Tinubu’s communication to the Senate came less than 24 hours after he transmitted the same MTEF/FSP documents to the leadership of the House of Representatives.
The letter was read on the House floor by the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, who also urged timely legislative action as required by law.
The MTEF and FSP are statutory instruments mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility Act and serve as the blueprint for Nigeria’s annual budgets.
They outline the government’s fiscal stance, macroeconomic assumptions, revenue frameworks, projected deficits, and sectoral priorities over a three-year period.
The Tide reports that approval by the National Assembly is a prerequisite for the executive to present the Appropriation Bill for the next fiscal year.
In a statement on Saturday, the former Senate Leader stated that the allocation of nominees across states and geopolitical zones falls short of the constitutional requirement for fair representation in the composition of the Federal Government.
The ex-Senate Whip warned that allowing the list to pass could deepen ethnic suspicion at a time when the administration should be consolidating national unity.
He highlighted disparities in the spread of nominees, noting that while some states have three or four slots, others have none. He also cited the inclusion of Senator Adamu Garba Talba from Yobe, who reportedly died in July.
“The entire North-East states have seven nominees in the list. Further checks revealed that the South-West geo-political zone has 15 nominees, while North-West and South-East have 13 and 9, respectively.
“North-Central region has 10 nominees in the list of career and non-career ambassadorial nominee while South-South parades 12 nominees,” Senator Ndume said.
According to him, such imbalances could heighten tensions and undermine Section 14(3) of the Constitution.
“My sincere appeal to President Tinubu is to withdraw this list. At this critical juncture in his administration, he should avoid missteps that could undermine national unity and foster ethnic distrust.
“I know him to be a cosmopolitan leader who is at home with every segment and stakeholder in the country. He should withdraw that list and present a fresh set of nominees that will align with the spirit of the Constitution on the Federal Character Principle,” Senator Ndume added.
He accused the legislators of undermining the sanctity of the legislature and acting as instruments of destabilization.
“The members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have, by their actions since they assumed office, shown that they are political puppets and a clog in the wheels of democratic progress,” Comrade Ememobong stated, adding that “They will go down in history as enemies of democracy and those who made mockery of the legislature.”
“So the easiest way to describe their action is a defection from APC to APC,” he said.
Comrade Ememobong announced that the party would deploy constitutional provisions to reclaim its mandate from those who have “ignobly and surreptitiously” abandoned the platform on which they were elected.
“Consequently, the PDP will take legal steps to activate the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended) to recover the mandate gained under the banner of our party which these people have now switched to another platform,” he said.
He urged party members in Rivers State to remain calm and steadfast.
“We urge all party members in Rivers State to remain faithful and resolute, as efforts are underway to rebuild the party along the path of inclusiveness, fairness and equity,” Comrade Ememobong assured.
