Leaked Pandora papers: AAN urges govt to stem tax avoidance

Etim Ekpimah

The ActionAid Nigeria has called on the federal and state governments to step up efforts to stamp out tax avoidance in Nigeria.

Secretary-General of ActionAid International, Julia Sánchez, said the call is necessitated as the Pandora Papers reveal yet again the extensive use of tax havens and tax secrecy by the economic and political elite.

According to her, five years have passed since the Panama Papers which exposed the dodgy tax dealings of a Panama-based law firm and its clients, and eight years since the G20 mandated the BEPS process, intended to end tax avoidance and satisfy people’s demands for tax justice and fairness.

She added that billionaires increased their wealth by US$3.9tn in the first year of the pandemic, while global workers lost earnings of US$3.7tn. With inequality still rising, exacerbated by the Covid-19 crisis, states need fair and progressive tax rules more than ever.

“It is totally unacceptable for governments to claim they can’t afford healthcare, quality education or a green transition away from polluting fossil fuels when they are allowing such vast resources to be looted by wealthy elites and corrupt politicians. These dodgy practices are facilitated by banks and the financial sector which serve as the guardians of secrecy in tax havens.

“The Pandora Papers are set to expose further tax scandals, featuring decision-makers using shoddy tax havens, and more loopholes in tax legislation that politicians will pretend are mistakes to be rectified, rather than there by design. This highlights more than ever the need for serious action on tax justice, including improved tax transparency,” she said.

Sánchez continued: “The Panama Papers, LuxLeaks and now the Pandora Papers are just the tip of a tax-dodging iceberg. If we are to avoid the fate of the Titanic, we must change course now and demand tax justice once and for all.”

Country Director, ActionAid Nigeria, Ene Obi, added: “From Nigeria alone, it is estimated that in the last 3 decades, 179 million pounds was carted out of the country to offshore accounts. Part of this wealth was used to purchase 233 properties in the United Kingdom.

“Not only does 179 million represent wealth that would have potentially been taxed in Nigeria, but it represents the much-needed capital that Nigeria lost to offshore accounts. What is even more worrisome is that the pandora papers exposed that it is the most influential Nigerians and government officials that have been at the forefront of this capital flights.”

Obi said ActionAid is calling for public registers of beneficial ownership, in all jurisdictions, accounts and entities, to stop crooks from setting up companies to hide wealth in tax havens. It must be made mandatory for countries to exchange vital information to help stop this damaging practice.

“Public country-by-country reporting of corporate tax payments and key financial data would help improve transparency and reduce the secrecy that allows these loopholes. A global minimum corporate tax rate of 25% would also be an effective way of stopping potential tax revenue being hidden in tax havens,” she noted.