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Human rights activist and former member of the National Assembly, Shehu Sani, has reacted to the decision of the Enugu State government to impose taxes on corpses in morgues across the South-East state.
The Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (ESIRS) recently dispatched a Mortuary Tax circular to all morticians operating in the state, announcing a ₦40 daily tax on each dead body.
The ESIRS' directive aligned with the provisions of section 34 of the Birth, Deaths and Burials Law Cap 15 Revised Laws of Enugu State 2004.
“The sum of ₦40.00 only is to be paid by owners of a corpse once it was not buried within twenty-four hours. The amount continues to count daily.
“Kindly ensure that owners of corpses make the payments before collection of the corpses for burial and then remit the same to the ESIRS in any commercial bank under the mortuary tax in Enugu State IGR Account,” the circular partly reads.
Reacting to the announcement, Sani said the development means that even dead people can no longer have a peaceful hereafter.
''Taxing Dead bodies in Enugu finally means people can no longer rest in peace,'' the activist wrote on X on Sunday, October 13, 2024.
Enugu govt defends Mortuary Tax
Earlier, the Executive Chairman of ESIRS, Emmanuel Nnamani, explained that the Mortuary Tax was imposed to spur the government's revenue generation drive.
He noted that the tax was in line with the state Mortuary Tax Law which had existed for years, adding that it was not new to the state.
The ESIRS chairman clarified that the mortuary tax was ₦40 daily only as against ₦40,000.
“It is an indirect tax paid by mortuary owners, not deceased family and it is just N40, not N40,000. Since its introduction, nobody has been denied burying their dead ones.
“It means that if the corpse stays in the mortuary for 100 days, the mortuary is expected to pay the state a sum of N4,000.
“The tax is not meant to generate revenue but to discourage people from taking their dead ones to the mortuary all the time,” Nnamani stressed.