ARCON council, multiple taxation, top stakeholders’ agenda for new administration

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STAKEHOLDERS in the nation’s integrated marketing communications industry have urged President Bola Tinubu to quickly constitute a council for the apex regulator in the industry, the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON), address the issue of multiple taxation in the industry, and revisit the recent escalation of excise duties on alcoholic beverages and tobacco, among others so as to give the industry some form of relief.

Speaking with Brands & Marketing, the President, Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Mr. Steve Babaeko, identified non-existence of a governing council for ARCON as a major issue the industry would like fixed within the shortest possible time.

While commending the federal government for its prompt appointment of Dr Lekan Fadolapo, as the agency’s Director General, at the expiration of the term of former Registrar, Alhaji Bello Kankarofi; Babaeko however urged the government to quickly inaugurate a new council to enable it complement some of the reforms the regulatory agency had embarked upon in the past few months.

“It’s rather painful that for the eight years of this administration, we’ve not been able to get the ARCON council off the ground.

“Bút for ARCON to be able to function in full capacity, there must be a chairman, and there must be a council. I believe that should be the first priority of the new government, to ensure that ARCON is in place,” the AAAN boss stated.

Tabling its own requests before the new government, the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria (MAN), tasked the new government on the need to quickly address the issue of multiple taxation and levies, and come up with unified exchange rate.

The association’s Director General, Segun Ajai-Kadiri also charged the Tinubu administration on the need to be decisive on the latest escalation of the excise duty on alcoholic beverages and tobacco.

“We are looking forward to the administration’s decision on the latest unwarranted escalation of the excise duty on alcoholic beverages and tobacco, which ran against the roadmap debate the former administration set about three years ago.

“It was a three -year roadmap. But one year down the line, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning did go outside of that and is promising to ruin the sectors that are affected and even make the anticipated revenue of government not realistic,” he added.

Kadiri, however, commended the new regime on its plans to promote domestic manufacturing, as against importation, which, he said, ‘takes away local jobs’.

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