First Thoughts:
Use and Disuse
Jean Baptiste Lamarck’s law of use and disuse remains a vital point of discourse for me. In summary, the law emphasizes that certain traits or characteristics develop based on their use or disuse and can be transferred hereditarily to progenies. I would prefer not to dwell on the somewhat controversial nature of the law, its criticisms or comparison to Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution among other lines of thought. Rather, I would relate the salient points of this law to our reality today.
One of the unavoidable effects of the adjustment to our new realities in the last five months would be the gradual improvement or erosion of certain skillsets and attributes. In the last five months, we have had to make adjustments on many levels that involved improving on certain areas which were not necessarily prominent or given any priority before Covid-19. At the same time, we have also had to drastically reduce or even totally jettison some details that were an integral part of our lives before Covid-19. On a lighter note, I bet some people may actually have forgotten how to dance due to the fact that they haven’t attended any social gatherings where they would have had to dance in the last five months!
While we continue to adjust to our new reality, we should endeavour to stay in tune and not entirely allow ourselves to forget those things that make us who we are. While we accept the new normal, let us not change who we are entirely, especially the parts that have always brought out the beauty in us. As much as we can, let us re-invent ourselves but also not lose our humanity in the process. We should stay relevant and prepare for when these times shall pass and when the dust would eventually settle because it definitely will someday.
In this Issue:
- We examine the H1 2020 Sectoral VAT Distribution and how the VAT remittance has been affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
- We review the tax reliefs rolled about by the Federal Inland Revenue Service and Various State Governments to cushion the effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on taxpayers with a ‘Series of Tax Reliefs – Part 1 &2’.
- The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) rejects 6% Stamp Duty on Tenancy and Lease Agreements. Read more here.
- The Osun State Government has granted tax reliefs to its taxpayers. Read more here.
- The latest report from Nigeria’s National Pension Commission (PenCom) disclosed that the country’s total pension assets increased from N10.6 trillion in April 2020 to N10.8 trillion in May 2020. Read more here.
- The Oyo State Government has announced tax relief packages to private and corporate businesses in the state in a bid to cushion the effect of the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic on the state’s economy. Read more here.
