FG should stop imposition of exercise duties on manufacturers – CPPE

The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has requested for the halt of the planned imposition of excise duties on manufacturers.

This was made known by Dr. Muda Yusuf, CEO of CPPE in a document titled, “CPPE calls for suspension of planned imposition of excise duties on manufacturers”

Yusuf claimed that the Finance Minister, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, warned earlier this year that excise duty would be levied on a variety of manufactured commodities in the country soon.

He, however, argued that manufacturers are already facing extremely difficult times as a result of growing energy costs, rising operational expenditures, severe currency depreciation, forex market illiquidity, galloping inflation, and various structural impediments.

He mentioned that manufacturers are struggling with unfair competition, especially from products imported from Asia which have flooded the Nigerian market, largely because of the porosity of the borders. These imports are often much cheaper than goods produced locally.

He added that the cost of logistics has continued to be on the upward trend, driven largely by the state of the roads, the limited freight capacity of the railway system, the crisis at the major ports, the traffic gridlock around the Lagos ports and extortions in the logistics chain.