Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, has said the proposed 5% fuel surcharge will not take effect until Nigeria’s economy shows clear signs of recovery — particularly a stronger naira or a drop in global crude oil prices.
Speaking at the Haulage and Logistics Magazine Conference & Exhibition in Lagos, Oyedele explained that although the policy is designed to fund road maintenance, implementing it now would worsen the hardship faced by Nigerians.
He noted that the idea of a fuel surcharge was first introduced under former President Olusegun Obasanjo to channel part of fuel revenues toward fixing roads — allocating 40% to federal roads and 60% to state and local government roads.
“The idea is brilliant and already being implemented in more than 150 countries,” Oyedele said, lamenting that most of Nigeria’s 200,000 kilometres of roads are in poor shape.
He disclosed that while the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) had sought approval to begin collecting the levy after the removal of fuel subsidy, the committee turned down the request.
“We said no – introducing such a tax now would be insensitive,” he said.
According to him, the surcharge remains part of the draft tax law but includes safeguards that require the Minister of Finance to issue an official order before it can be activated.
“For me, the right time will be when the naira strengthens or crude prices drop, so the surcharge won’t raise pump prices,” he added.
Oyedele also assured that the ongoing tax reforms will ease the burden on the haulage and logistics sector by eliminating multiple taxes, cutting operational costs, and boosting efficiency.
“We are not introducing new taxes; we are removing the many duplicated ones that frustrate transporters and increase prices,” he stated.
Under the new policy, small transport and logistics businesses with annual turnover below N100 million will be exempted from company income tax, while qualified operators will enjoy VAT refunds and other tax incentives.
He emphasized that the reforms aim to simplify Nigeria’s tax system and ensure all collections are transparent, efficient, and fairly distributed across all levels of government.
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