NUFBTE calls on House of Representatives to stop CETA Bill

The National Union of Food, Beverage, and Tobacco Employees, NUFBTE, has called on the House of Representatives to delay the Customs, Excise Tariffs, Etc. (Consolidation) Amendment Bill, 2025 (CETA Bill), which is currently before them.

In an open letter to the Speaker of the House, Abbas Tajudeen, and signed by NUFBTE President Comrade Garba Dankama, the union warned that passing this bill now would add more pressure on Nigerian workers and the manufacturing industry. This comes at a time when economic reforms are already weighing heavily on them.

The 2025 CETA Bill aims to replace the current ₦10-per-litre specific tax on soft drinks with a percentage tax based on the retail price of these products.

Dankama said Nigerian workers cannot handle another poorly planned tax. He warned that this bill could worsen an already tough situation for the industry.

He explained that the manufacturing sector, especially food, beverage, and tobacco, is already struggling. Passing the CETA Bill would harm an already weak industrial foundation and put workers' jobs at risk.

“Capacity utilization across manufacturing has declined sharply as producers contend with prohibitively high borrowing costs, rising energy and logistics expenses, persistent constraints in foreign exchange access, and weakened consumer purchasing power. Several production lines have been scaled back or shut down entirely. The NAD sector, which anchors hundreds of thousands of jobs across farming, haulage, distribution, and retail, cannot absorb an additional tax escalation without triggering a wave of further closures, retrenchments, and value chain collapse,” he stated.

Dankama believes that the House of Representatives will protect the interests of Nigerian workers and support the manufacturing sector during these tough economic times.

He noted that workers have already been hit hard by the Federal Government’s fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange reforms. They may not manage another financial burden. He also pointed out that workers’ salaries have not kept up with the rising costs of transport, food, housing, and other essentials.

“The sector needs room to adjust to the current economic realities and remain sustainable. An aggressive percentage-based tax at this time could place a serious strain on the industry, with consequences for investment, jobs, and livelihoods. We should not put further pressure on an industry that provides employment and supports the livelihoods of so many Nigerians,” he said.

The NUFBTE president added that a percentage-based tax would increase the burden on producers, as manufacturing costs are already affected by global price changes and uncertainty. He warned that the proposed tax would lead to higher prices, lower demand, and more factory closures.

“Taxing a product category that contributes only 5% of national sugar intake will not yield real public health benefits. It will simply push consumers toward cheaper, unregulated alternatives, while destroying the livelihoods of over a million Nigerians who have already borne the brunt of recent economic reforms,” he added.