By Ighomuaye Lucky. O
The Coalition of Association of Private Schools (CAPS), Edo State, has raised a serious concern that over 300,000 teachers are at the verge of losing their jobs if the state government implements the 300 percent increment in Personal Income Tax of private school owners.
The chairman of the coalition, Ohis-Olakhe Emmanuel, disclosed this during a protest march to the Commissioner for Education’s office in Benin.
He said the significant increase, ranging from 200 percent to 4000 percent by the state government has raised concerns among private school owners which has left them with no option than to stage a peaceful protest after exploring all possible means for dialogue which yielded no results.
Mr. Emmanuel said that besides the job lost among the teachers, private school vendors, including publishers, tailors and food vendors and many others may become jobless as schools struggle to stay afloat.
Emmanuel added that, education is a social service that should be exempted from taxes, especially at the basic level, stressing that, higher fees may lead to reduce enrollment, resulting in more out-of-school children.
He said the Nigerian Constitution (Section 18) emphasized the importance of education and the need for government support.
According to him “The Universal Basic Education(UBE) Act 2004 promotes free and compulsory education for all Nigerian children; taxing private schools may contradict this goal”
He appealed that as a civil service state, government should reduce taxes for private school owners or bring them to the barest minimum in order to reduce the financial burden on low-income earners. This will make education more affordable for families and potentially boost economic growth.
Responding, Edo Commissioner for Education, Mr Paddy Iyamu, assured the protesters that the government would review their demands.
He promised to convene a meeting with the Edo Internal Revenue Service (EIRS) to address the concerns raised.
“Taxes are necessary for the government to meet its obligations, but we will ensure schools are not overburdened,” Iyamu said.
He also urged schools falling short of minimum standards to take corrective steps, warning that the government would soon begin strict enforcement actions.
