By Sunday Oguntola
The Presiding Bishop of Rhema Christian Church and Towers Ota, Ogun State, Bishop Taiwo Akinola, has appealed to the federal government to reduce the high costs of governance by cutting down on the salaries and allowances of public office holders.
He also called for reduction in the number of special advisers and aides approved for political appointees.
These, according to him, would be more beneficial than passing on the increasing costs of governance to Nigerians in the form of higher Value Added Tax (VAT) and return of toll gates to federal roads.
Akinola said Nigerians were already struggling under the heavy burden of taxes and charges.
He spoke last week ahead of the 28th convention of the church, which kicks off today at its Ota International headquarters.
The 2019 Rhema World Convention with the theme “Total victory in Christ Jesus” is expected to attract participants from USA, UK, Canada, South Africa, Ghana and Kenya where the church has branches.
On why federal government should not add to the burden of Nigerians, Akinola said: “The government is piling up taxes and charges on the people without considering the negative impacts such trends are having on the people governed.
“We are of the opinion that it’s rather better to cut down on the huge cost of governance than passing the burdens onto the ordinary citizens who are just struggling to hold up their heads above the murky economic waters.
“However, to our greatest chagrin, what we see is that government is rather increasing the number of cabinet ministers and advisers.
“We strongly feel that this development is not in the interests of our nation’s economic development, and should be looked into both critically and urgently by government, and readdressed without further delay.”
He appealed for urgent actions to fix the huge infrastructural deficiencies in the nation as well as the worsening unemployment rate, which he said could set the nation on fire.
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The cleric further called for tough measures against insecurity and corruption, saying Nigerians deserved to enjoy much more than they do.
On the proposed City of Zion at Moluferin, Wasimi along the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway, Akinola informed works have commenced.
When completed, he stated the multi-hectare property will boast of Zion Sanctuary, International peace and freedom centre, hospitals, Old Peoples’ Home, schools, empowerment centres, shopping mall and recreation parks.
He said the convention, which ends next Sunday, will feature three sessions daily and free medical tests for all participants.
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