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The Bauchi State Government has criticised Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, over his remarks against Governor Bala Mohammed’s stance on the country’s tax reform bills.
How it began
President Bola Tinubu, last year, transmitted four tax reform bills to the National Assembly for consideration.
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The bills are: the Nigeria Tax Bill 2024, the Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board Establishment Bill.
However, the bills have faced criticisms from some Nigerians, particularly northern politicians and governors, who said they are against the region’s interests.
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Mr Mohammed, who is the chairperson of the PDP Governor’s Forum, recently opposed the bills and argued that the bills favour one region against northern Nigeria.
The Bauchi governor claimed the bills amounted to “calls for anarchy” and warned that there could be a crisis if the legislations were passed.
The presidency later asked Mr Mohammed to withdraw his statement, but the governor declined.
However, speaking on Sunday when he appeared as a guest on Channels TV’s ‘Sunday Politics,’ Mr Tuggar accused Mr Mohammed of leveraging on criticism of President Tinubu’s tax reform bills to advance his 2027 presidential bid.
The minister stressed that the governor has been seeking Mr Tinubu’s attention since he began criticising the proposed legislations.
“Governor Bala Mohammed showed clearly that he did not have any sincerity of purpose,” he said.
“But what Senator Bala Mohammed proceeded to do was to use it as a platform to launch his presidential campaign very early in the day,” the minister added.
‘Attacks politically motivated’
But reacting in a statement on Wednesday, Aminu Gamawa, the chief of staff to Governor Mohammed, described Mr Tuggar’s criticism as “undiplomatic and opportunistic outburst.”
Mr Gamawa accused the minister of being “sycophantic” to curry favour from Mr Tinubu’s administration.
The chief of staff said although Mr Tuggar hails from Bauchi State, he has remained ignorant of Mr Mohammed’s achievements in the north-eastern state, particularly in agriculture.
“Tuggar’s attacks on Bala Mohammed are clearly motivated by his ambition to contest the Bauchi governorship in 2027.
“However, his strategy of maligning the governor will backfire. The people of Bauchi have witnessed Bala Mohammed’s transformative leadership and will not be swayed by the baseless rhetoric of an absentee politician,” he said.
‘Failed tenure’
Mr Gamawa said it was ironic that Mr Tuggar would criticise Governor Mohammed’s agricultural policies in Bauchi State while the minister’s poor performance in the ministry led to Nigeria’s declining influence in regional and global diplomacy.
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“Tuggar’s tenure as foreign affairs minister has been nothing short of disastrous. Under his watch, Nigeria’s foreign policy has faltered, and the country’s standing in international relations has diminished,” he stated.
The chief of staff claimed, without proof, that ECOWAS “collapsed due to the minister’s ill-advice to the president”.
He also argued that Mr Tuggar has overseen the collapse of Nigeria’s relationships with its Sahelian neighbors which he said has been exacerbating insecurity along the border.
“It is high time Tuggar removed the log from his own eye before attempting to point out the speck in Bala Mohammed’s,” Mr Gamawa stated.
