A Chartered Accountant, Lateef Bakare has called for societal reorientation, swift punishment and empowerment of agencies in order to punish economic saboteurs.
Bakare said this was necessary because distribution of wealth and development is in the hands of just a few percentage of the population
He made this known during the question and answer session of the 48th edition of THE FRONTLINERS of the League of Veteran Journalists, Osun State chapter on Wednesday in Osogbo
Bakare, who held that there is something wrong with the thinking of Nigerians, added that Nigeria has a social and psychological problem and not economic.
He said, “What is the purpose of governance. It is creating a reasonable amount of wellness and wellbeing for the citizens, both the rich and the poor.
“We find ourselves in a situation where the wealth distribution and development is in the hands of just a few percentage of the population.
“With this happening, the society will be in an endemic poverty situation, which is where Nigeria is and an unacceptable large proportion of the population is below the poverty line.
“There is something wrong with our thinking as a people.
“I see a multifaceted problem in Nigeria. Nigeria has a social and psychological problem and not economic, something is wrong with our brain.
“This is a question of poverty mentality. If people implementing government policy have a dirty mind, then there is a problem.” “What we require today is societal reorientation. Let’s make punishment swift and empower our agencies,” he concluded.
He also commended President Bola Tinubu’s taxation harmonisation policy, but noted that its implementation may be problematic.
“Tax is compulsory. President Bola Tinubu tax harmonisation policy is a good one but the implementation may be problematic and it has not addressed the imbalance in tax management
“The government must also find a way of isolating the two percent of the population that controls Nigeria’s wealth to relate it to their businesses.
“Tax payment has been based on the vulnerable. Taxation must start from the people in government. They must lead the way.
“Our leadership must find a way to make it easy for people to comply with the law,” he stated.
