Some traders in Ekiti State have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to suspend the current tax policy, citing the harsh economic realities facing small business owners and low-income earners across the country.

According to BusinessDay, the traders said the prevailing economic conditions had made it increasingly difficult for petty traders and informal sector operators to survive, warning that continued taxation could worsen poverty and hardship among ordinary Nigerians.

Speaking on the impact of the tax policy on small-scale businesses, Samuel Okorafor said the policy should be suspended until the economy shows clear signs of recovery.

According to him, imposing taxes at a time when businesses are barely surviving would only deepen economic hardship and push more people into poverty.

Okorafor argued that taxation should be based strictly on income levels, stressing that many petty traders operate on very slim margins and struggle to meet basic family needs.

He noted that not everyone has the capacity to pay taxes, particularly women and others in the informal sector who rely on low-profit activities for survival.

Okorafor said many Nigerians earn a living through the sale of food items, firewood, pepper, crayfish, tomatoes and other household essentials, adding that such businesses should not be burdened with taxes under the current economic climate.

He said, “The tax problem should have been suspended only now, until the economy of the country is still alive. The government should tax people according to their income.

“The tax is not made for everybody. Especially, look at my business. It is tiny. It’s just a petty business. So if you tax me based on this income, I’m going nowhere. I cannot be able to cater for my family without paying tax to the Government.

“So the tax is based on income. But for me, according to the situation in the country today. If I’m to speak my own mind, the tax problem should have been suspended only now, until the economy of the country is revived.

“So the government should consider people for the tax problem, because not everybody is capable of paying that tax.

“My business is tiny, just petty trading. If I am taxed based on this income, I will not be able to take care of my family.

“How do you tax businesswomen struggling in Lagos to cater for their families? What of women selling roasted corn, firewood or pepper? Is it that kind of business you want to tax?”

Another trader, Toyin Dudulewa, also expressed concern over the tax reform, describing it as both emulating and challenging.

She urged the Federal Government to be lenient in its implementation of the policy in order to ensure that it favours everyone, especially small traders and low-income earners.