The Christian Association of Nigeria’s (CAN) Abia State branch has characterised the state government’s policy of requiring churches to pay signpost tax as a sensitive matter that may have an impact on the state’s reputation.
In an October 22, 2024, letter to the Governor, CAN voiced its disapproval of the development and encouraged the Governor to step in and reverse the policy.
While warning that the signpost issue is a minor but delicate subject that needs immediate attention, the CAN letter, signed by Rev. Francis Okere, Secretary, and Rev. Ojo Ojo Uduma, Chairman, urged for a roundtable conversation between CAN and the state government on the way forward.
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According to information obtained by Anaedoonline.ng, the Abia State Signage and Advertising Agency, or ABSAA, proposed the policy in compliance with current legislation that permits it to control advertising space and produce income for the state.
But in defence of her position, ABSAA’s managing director, Mrs. Victoria Onwubiko, cleared Governor Alex Otti of any involvement in the tax policy, claiming that the law passed by the Abia State House of Assembly gave her organisation the authority to control the advertising market in Abia.
Mrs. Onwubiko stated on Flo FM Umuahia on Wednesday that churches were only had to pay standard fees for advertisements that were placed outside of their buildings, not inside.
” The letter has not even gotten to the Governor. The laws that set up the agency allows us to charge for signposts outside your church premises, not the ones within your premises.”
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Additionally, she refuted claims that her organisation is requiring candidates for local government chairmanships to pay a mandatory one million naira for each billboard they erect.
Instead of turning to the media, she suggested that anyone who was troubled by her agency’s policies come to her office and ask for guidance.
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