The enforcement team from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) on Friday, stormed Masaka market, located in Nasarawa State, and engaged with the executive members of the Market Association, traders and consumers in a bid to stem the rising cost of food items in the market.

Mrs. Boladale Adeyinka, Director, of Surveillance and Investigation, FCCPC, who led the enforcement team to the market located in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, said the team was on a fact-finding mission to understand why the prices of food items continue to soar despite the measures put in place by the Federal Government to stem it.

Adeyinka explained that recently, Naira has been appreciating against the Dollar, adding that it is expected that this measure would bring down the cost of food items in the market.

Briefing newsmen at the end of the fact-finding mission, Adeyinka explained that the enforcement team of the FCCPC was in the market to interact with executive members of the Traders’ Association, traders and consumers.

She noted that the team of investigators had gathered information on what is responsible for the skyrocketing prices of food items in the market despite the frantic efforts made by the government to stabilise the prices of goods and services.

She identified multiple taxation imposed on traders by various associations in the market as well as the high cost of transportation as being responsible for the high cost of items in the market.

Adeyinka said a concise report would be developed by the Commission, which would advise the government on how to remove multiple taxation to reduce the prices of food items in the market.

The Director of Surveillance and Investigation further assured that the illegal activities of cartels who often impose levies on the traders would be checkmated.

Also speaking, Danlami Salisi Gimba, General Chairman of, Masaka Market Association, blamed the removal of the fuel subsidy as being responsible for the high cost of goods in the market.

Gimba appealed to the government to reduce the price of fuel to ensure that the cost of transportation is greatly reduced, which would in turn impact positively on the prices of food items.

Some traders who spoke to our Correspondent decried the high rate of hunger as well as low sales in the market.

They appealed to the government to, as a matter of urgency, bring down the cost of fuel and introduce policies that would create a new lease of life for the citizenry.

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) have expressed their commitment to collaborate on National Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) to enhance and create synergy between digital identity, payment ecosystem, and secure and seamless data exchange capabilities for Nigeria.

The Director General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, stated this when he led the management team of the Agency on a working visiting to the Director General of NIMC, Mrs. Bisoye Coker-Odusote in Abuja.

Abdullahi explained that the initiative was part of efforts to further strengthen Nigeria’s digital economy in line with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

He disclosed that the two agencies of government have had fruitful discussions on various initiatives, including building DPI stacks for a secure and seamless data exchange and forming partnerships to transform the National Identity System.

This collaboration, he explained, was aimed at harnessing the potential of the innovative ecosystem and the use of Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) to drive digital transformation in Nigeria.

To ensure a smooth implementation, a 12-man committee was set up during the visit.

This committee, according to him, would play a crucial role in kick-starting and harmonising the initiatives.

The committee is expected to deliver a comprehensive implementation report within the next four weeks.

Recall that NIMC recently announced that it would launch an upgraded national identity card with payment functionality for all social and financial services.

The innovative card made in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Inter-bank Settlement System (NIBSS), is to be powered by AfriGO, a National domestic card scheme.

According to NIMC, the innovation will address the demand for physical identification enabling cardholders to prove their identity, and access government and private social services.

It will also facilitate financial inclusion for disenfranchised Nigerians, empower citizens, as well as encourage increased participation in nation-building.

NIMC noted that only registered citizens and legal residents with the National Identification Number (NIN) will be eligible to request the card.

The Chattered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) has pledged to work with Anambra state government to boost the state’s monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) through tax payments.

Currently, the state government generates approximately N3 billion per month in tax revenue, but has expressed a desire to collaborate with CITN to increase monthly generation to at least N4 billion per month through the formalisation of the Informal section.

 Samuel Agbeluyi, President of CITN, spoke at a one-day joint taxpayer education and enlightenment programme organised by Anambra State Internal Revenue in Awka on Tuesday. Service, AIRS, in collaboration with CITN, stated that efforts would be intensified to increase state revenue generation by bringing the informal sector into the tax net.

Agbeluyi, who was represented by CITN Vice President Innocent Ohagwa, explained that the partnership would also help the informal sector, which included motorists, petty traders, freelancers, schools, and others, advance in their chosen careers by providing them with government incentives, loans, free business and professional consultancy services, among other things.

He contended that, with the theme “formalising the informal sector: the economic benefits,” most informal sectors were facing survival challenges due to their location outside the revenue window and bucket.

Agbeluyi described taxation as a statutory obligation imposed on all citizens in order for the government to provide basic amenities to the citizenry, adding that “if you want to reap the benefits of the State government, there is a need for tax compliance because tax will assist the State government to serve the citizenry better.” To accomplish this, the informal sectors must be brought into the tax net because they employ the vast majority of Anambra State’s population due to the State’s numerous markets, transportation, and other facilities. We encourage everyone to formalise their businesses because it has numerous benefits.”

Also speaking, Dr Greg Ezeilo, Chairman and CEO of AiRS, stated that the program’s objectives were to provide meaningful knowledge of taxation and other related matters for the benefit of all citizens.

The Executive Director of Assessment AiRS, Mr. Ben Okafor, stated that the programme aims to improve tax collection by identifying areas for improvement and designing outreach programmes to inform stakeholders in the informal sector about the government’s tax collection efforts.

Nze Akachukwu Nwankpo, the lead paper presenter, urged the Anambra State government to develop a good mechanism that will allow them to reach out to all those in the informal sector and obtain the necessary data for tax collection.

Nwankpo, a former governorship candidate in Anambra state, went on to list the benefits of informal sectors joining the tax net, including increased access to finance, links to value chains, government relief measures, improved performance, lower poverty and inequality, and social and political stability.

Earlier, Anambra State Governor Professor Chukwuma Soludo, represented by his Chief of Staff, Mr Ernest Ezeajughi, described the program’s theme as interesting, noting that its sustenance would help to increase the State’s revenue generation from taxation to about N4 billion per month.