Delegates at the on-going National Conference yesterday voted in favour of payment of tax by churches, mosques and religious organizations.
In their deliberation on the report of the committee on religion, they also voted that federal and state governments should stop the sponsorship of Islamic and Christian pilgrimages.
They however could not agree on whether to scrap Islamic and Christian pilgrims boards as deliberations on this led to an uproar, forcing the conference leadership to move the vote on the issue to today.
The decision to make religious bodies pay taxes came up when a delegate representing Civil Organisations, Mallam Naseer Kura in his contribution to the debate on the report observed that religious leaders were making much money and should be taxed.
A delegate representing the Nigeria Guild of Editors, Isaac Ighure also frowned at the situation where according to him pastors and heads of churches make too much money with some of them owning private jets. "Some people buy private jets when people in their churches are suffering and living in abject poverty, they should be made to pay taxes," he submitted.
At the resumed session after break, the issue of payment of tax by the churches, Mosques and other religious bodies came up and delegates unanimously voted for it.
Decisions reached at the conference are subjected to ratification by the National Assembly. If the National Assembly okays the decision, religious organizations will have to start paying tax, a development that will be welcomed by several Nigerians who have often complained about the luxurious lives of men of God.
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