Department of Public & International Law - Scholarly Publications
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Item A Review of Formalities in Company Administration(Abuja Journal of Private and Comparative Law, 2011) Kontagora, A.MThe word “formal” means “following established procedure, custom and practices (eg. following a ceremonial practice), and formality. It means a point of practice that must be observed so as to achieve a particular legal result or procedural requirement. To achieve a legal requirement in the administration of companies therefore, recourse must be had to the provision of the relevant laws. The relevant laws are those that govern the formation, management and winding up of companies, which include (1)Companies and Allied Matters Act No 1, of 1990 (as amended), cap C.20, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004. (2) Securities and Exchange Commission Act, 1989; (3) Investment and securities Act 1990; (4) Banking Act, 2004; and (5) Insurance Act 2003Item An Appraisal of the Legal Framework of Nigerian National Tax Policy as a Tool for Revenue Growth and Economic Development(Portharcourt Law Journal, 2020) Kontagora, A.MThe Nigerian tax system is centered on three major pivots which are tax legislation, tax policy and tax administration. A tax policy is a general framework that provides guidelines for the operations of the tax system. Instead of a properly documented tax, the fiscal objectives of successive administration have, at various times, dictated the operations of the Nigerian tax system. Largely, the objectives have included the institution of a low tax regime aimed at reducing the tax burdens of individuals in order to encourage savings and investment; the encouragement and inculcation of voluntary compliance among the citizenry, as opposed to coercive methods of ensuring compliance; the stimulation of tax incentives to encourage the development of certain sectors of the economy such as manufacturing, solid minerals, agriculture, oil and gas; a deliberate move from income tax to consumption tax; the introduction of a self-assessment regime to encourage taxpayer participation; and the use of statutory mechanisms and to curb tax evasion and avoidance. There is always the problem of making a good legislation, sound tax policy and a viable tax administrative mechanism under the Nigerian tax regime. It is only when the general tax system is overhauled in terms of effective tax laws, efficient tax policies and administrative system that the tax regime will improve Nigerian revenue growth and development.Item A Review of Income Tax Relief In Nigeria: Rationale and Considerations(Novena University Law Journal, 2017) Kontagora, A.MThere have for sometime been complaints upon complaints of multiplicity of taxes in Nigeria with less focus being made on the various windows open for the tax Payers to exist through, inform of reliefs (as breathing spaced). It is for the reason that this scholar thought of highlighting some of those windows provided in favour of the tax payers in the various tax laws/ legislation in Nigeria.Item An Appraisal of the three capitals of Taxation(Capital Gains Tax, Capital Transfer Tax and Capital Allowance) Under The Nigerian Tax Regime(Kampala International University Law Journal, 2019) Kontagora, A. MThe Taxation of Capital Gains and Capital Transferred Assets otherwise called Wealth Taxes, involve the levying of taxes on accumulated wealth/resources which can be used for investment and reinvestment for multiplier effects and in the Process same tax relieves are given in form of Capital Allowances for business organizations. This Paper appraises these Capitals with a view to discovering what they are, how they are applied and their effects on the revenue/tax generation on the economic growth and development of Nigeria,Item A Critical Evaluation of the Problems of Income Tax Enforcement Procedures in the Nigerian Tax System(University Law Journal, 2017) Kontagora, A.MLooking at the Nigerian tax system, the existence of the various tax laws in Nigeria provide for an effective tax administration. However, the country is always faced with problems of income tax enforcement procedures. The government (Federal, States and Local) and their agencies, the taxing authorities are faced with problems concerning the procedure for collection and administration of taxes as well as problem of enforcing the tax laws. These problems are largely administrative, statutory, judicial and to some extent, political in nature, It is only when all the stake holders mentioned above put all hands on deck to tackle these problems by making effective tax enforcement mechanisms under the Nigerian tax laws that laudable progress can be achieved.Item A Diagnostic Appraisal of the Fiscal Regime: Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act in Focus(Novena University Law Journal, 2019) Kontagora, A.MThis paper extensively explains in lucid terms and in deserving instances, compares the fiscal provisions of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act and the Petroleum Profits Tax Act with reference to the Production Sharing Contracts petroleum arrangement in the upstream petroleum industry in Nigeria. It also makes a very strong case for a total review of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act with a view to ensuring that the Nigerian government derives maximum benefits from her petroleum resources.Item An Analysis of the Legal Framework of Income Tax Enforcement Procedure in Nigeria(Unimaid Journal of Private and Property Law, 2020) Kontagora, A.MThe imposition of tax under the Nigerian Tax System is purely statutory. There is no common law of taxation, as all taxes derive their authority from a particular statute or the other. There has been a requirement that if government wants to interfere with property, pry into a man's affairs and take his money then this must be on clear statutory authority. This requirement is premised on the need to protect the individual from the state, hence the principle that if parliament intended to tax, it must have said so clearly in a statute. Consequently, over the years, the Nigerian tax system has undergone significant changes. The tax laws are being reviewed to enhance effective means of generating revenue through income tax so as to meet up with the current demands of the Nigerian fiscal Revenue programmes and to reduce tax evasion and tax avoidance in the Nigerian tax system. The The Nigerian tax system consists of wide range of statutes by which the Nigerian government seeks to charge and collect revenue for public expenditures. The basic system of taxation in Nigerian is the taxation of income. That is why this scholar seeks to look into the legal framework of the income tax enforcement procedure in Nigeria with a view to analyzing them.Item An Appraisal of the Tax Regime in the Nigerian Petroleum Industry, Journal of Law and Policy(Journal of Law and Policy, 2023) Kontagora, A. MThe revenue generated from the taxes paid by the petroleum companies in Nigeria is a major source of income powering the Nigeria economy. Over the year in its bid to regulate the petroleum industry the Nigeria government has enacted various tax laws including the recently enacted Petroleum Industry Act 2021 all with the sole purpose of generating more revenue for the state. The federal government of Nigeria on whom the Nigerian constitution vests ownership and control of mining of petroleum products in Nigerian uses taxation as one of its tools for the exercise of control over petroleum resources in respect of oil exploration, oil prospecting and mining of the petroleum resources in Nigeria. Taxation of the oil companies in Nigerian is propelled and geared towards ensuring that government generates enough revenue for the provision of the needed infrastructures and basic amenities to the Nigeria citizens. This article analysed the legal tax regime operating in the petroleum industry in Nigeria. It outlined and discussed the challenges faced by the government in administrating the taxes in the petroleum industry. It took into cognizance the instance that led to inadequate revenue generation on the part of the government, which is occasioned by multiple loopholes, inherent in our various tax laws which are usually exploited by the companies liable to taxes under them. It also discussed the various tax incentives available to the companies operating in the petroleum sector in Nigeria to encourage them to invest more of their resources and profits in Nigeria. The various tax statutes regulating taxation in the petroleum industry in Nigeria and other legal materials were also discussed. An in-depth analysis and reviews of the relevant provisions of the tax statutes and the legal materials consulted revealed. that the tax statutes were inadequate to address the tax needs of Nigeria for the generation of adequate revenue to fund its economy. We were able to observe that the tax statutes as they currently exist leave a lot of room for tax avoidance and tax evasion leading to low revenue generation by the tax authorities from the oil industry. The article is also of the view that multiple tax regimes in the petroleum industry in Nigeria have greatly contributed to tax avoidance and tax evasion and recommended that there is a need for a single enactment (legislation) ta harmonize all the tax regimes in the petroleum industry in Nigeria.Item An Appraisal of the Ownership Theories of Oil and Gas with Particular Reference to Nigeria and the United States of America (USA)(Unimaid Journal of Private and Property Law, 2017) Kontagora, A.MThe ownership of natural resources in Nigeria, with particular reference to oil and gas, has become topical, sensitive, sensational, preponderant and vexatious. This is so because, even when there are other sources for earning national wealth, none provides as much as 80% of foreign earnings. This is why the nation reels from the effect of any hiccup in both local and international oil markets. The clamour for resource control is either caused by the type of ownership of natural resources that a country practices for example, as in Nigeria where the Niger Delta Region feels that the government ownership of natural resources (oil and gas) is a deprivation of their right to the natural resources located in their land and/or the desire to appropriate the revenue realized therefrom. In the world, two main types of natural resource ownership exist. They are private ownership and public ownership. These ownership theories will be examined with a view to ascertaining their suitability and preference. A middle course of natural resource ownership exists in which both the government and/or private individuals own resources pari passu (side by side). This paper looks essentially at the two common types of ownership of oil and gas viz public ownership and private ownership. This is with a view to providing adequate information that will enable unbiased Judgement as to which practice is best suitable for Nigeria to adopt. Nigeria and the United States of America are countries where public an ; private ownerships of oil and gas are obtained/practised respectively.Item An Overview of the Legal Challenges in the Administration of Property Tax in Nigeria(Port Harcourt Journal of Business Law, 2017) Kontagora, A.MLand is the most important resource any individual or government can own. It is for this reason that it attracts a lot of attention and interests leading to conflicts. Consequently, laws are made to protect the land and the various interests conflicting over it. That is what motivated this scholar to look into some of those areas (of interests and conflicts) to highlight them and the relevant laws, observations and make recommendations for the minimization of such conflicts so as to enhance economic activities in the country.Item An Analysis of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015(The Journal of Environmental and Human Right Law, 2023) Kontagora, A.MThe rising crime rate in Nigeria in recent times in the form of murder, robbery, fraud, terrorism, banditry, militancy, herders/farmers clashes, kidnappings and so on is alarming thereby necessitating the reactions of the law enforcement agents, like the police and other security agencies. Who in the course of doing their job of trying to enforce the provisions of criminal laws in the country with a view to curbing such crimes sometimes overstep their boundaries by infringing on the fundamental human rights of the suspects and defendants thereby necessitating the enactment of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015 which has outlined the various rights of suspects and or defendants before, during trials, and after convictions. This Article, therefore, examined the rights of suspects and defendants under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 and how it sought to protect the rights of the defendants and the loopholes/shortcomings in the provisions of the enactment. As well as the areas where it conflicts with the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria of 1999 (As Amended). That while the enactment made provisions for the protection of the fundamental human rights of suspects/defendants, some sections of the ASJA, like sections 293 - 296 conflict with $.36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended). The Article therefore among others recommended for the proper training and retraining of the law enforcement agents on the fundamental human rights of suspects/defendants. It is also recommended that the sections of the enactment that are inconsistent with the provisions of the constitution be repealed.Item Review of Some Major Tax Legislation in Nigeria From 1990-2007(Journal of Private & Comparative Law, 2011) Kontagora, A.MThere have been multiple tax legislation since 1990 covering various aspects of the socio-economic. life of Nigerians, major ones of which were enacted between 1990 and 2007. It interests this writer therefore to take a critical look into them with a view to highlighting their features, some of the amendments made thereto and their importance as they touch the main socio-economic aspects of the country. These enactments include: 1. Companies Income Tax Act, Cap 60, LFN 1990, as amended by Companies Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2007. 2. Value Added Tax Act No. 102, 1993 as amended by Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act 2007. 3.Personal Income Tax Act, No. 104, 1993, as amended by Personal Income Tax (Amendment) Act 1999. 4. Capital Gains Tax Act, Cap 42, LFN 1990 as amended by Capital Gains Tax Act, Cap. CI, LEN 2004. 5. Petroleum Profit Tax Act, Cap 354, LFN 1990, as amended by Petroleum Profit Tax Act, No. 30, 1999, LFN 2007.Item The Effects of Corporate Tax Rate on Revenue Generation In Nigeria(Portharcourt Journal of Business Law, 2021) Kontagora, A.MCompanies Income Tax (Amendment) Act (CITAA) No.11, 2007 is the present legislation that governs the taxation of companies and incorporated bodies in Nigeria. The Act provides for the rate of corporate tax rate. However, some provisions of the Act on the rate negatively affects the generation of revenue in Nigeria. The aim of this article is examine the provision of the ITAA on corporate tax rate and identify its effects on revenue generation in Nigeria. Priori research method is adopted in the work. Consequently, provisions of the CITAA on the rate are analysed. Relevant information from text books, conference paper or internet websites are used. It has been found that the Nigerian corporate tax rate is among the highest in the world. To be precise, it is the second highest after the USA. This negatively affects the generation of revenue in the country. This is because the rate is part of the factors considered by the investors before making investment in any place. High rate of tax discourages investment in the country. Many companies relocated to Ghana and other African countries that are tax havens. The amount should therefore be reduced to attract more investors that pay tax that boasts up government revenue.Item Deregulation of Nigeria’s Natural Resources Sector as a Catalyst for National Development(KIU Journal of Social Sciences, 2018) Kontagora, A.MFor over 40 years Nigeria's economy was driven by petroleum. During this period, her influence in Africa soared. It peaked in the 1970s and 80s, so much so that she spent oil money on the decolonization of certain countries in Africa. Natural Resource in Nigeria is owned by the people, but administered for the overall benefit of Nigerians by government. This precious natural gift lost its pride of place when the worth of petroleum dipped in the international market. Prior to this economic decline, Nigeria adopted a near socialist system by operating a subsidy regime. Because what belongs to government belongs to no specific person, Nigerian past leaders became profligate. A public property is nobody's property and can be misused and mismanaged. So, Natural Resources is a gift from God to be used to develop a given area or country for the betterment of the people. Natural Resources can be better harnessed by private enterprise. Thus, deregulation in the least, or outright privatization is the best option in maximizing natural resources.