Yobe Cattle Marketers Protest Over Tax Hike

Potiskum Cattle Market in Yobe State faced turmoil on Thursday due to a rise in tax rates imposed by the Potiskum local government council, leading to a protest by the marketers.

Naija News reports this disruption significantly impacted livestock trading during the market’s busiest hours.

Speaking on the latest development, the Chairman of Amalgamated Cattle Dealers Potiskum Branch, Alhaji Hassan Alkali, expressed his concerns to the media, highlighting the conflict that arose when the Potiskum Local Government’s Task Force on Revenue Collection decided to increase the weekly revenue payment for loading from ₦1,500 per truck to N10,000.

He said, “The Potiskum Local Government Secretary, who is also the Chairman of Task Force Committee on Revenue Collection, Idris, invited us for a meeting and informed us that they have decided to review our revenue upward to N10,00 henceforth, but we disagreed and said that we will consult our members first.

“After due consultations with our members and other relevant stakeholders, we went back to the Local Government and told them that we could afford to pay ₦3,500, but the Local Government rejected our offer and insisted on ₦7,000 but our members declined and protested by deserting the market and began to patronise neighbouring markets in Nangere LGA in the state and Dagauda in Bauchi State where the tax is cheaper.”

He stated that at least 70 trucks were filled with cows every week for transportation to various regions of the country.

Alkali stressed the urgency of addressing this issue to prevent potential economic repercussions on Potiskum, particularly on the renowned cattle market, known as one of the largest in West Africa.

Reacting to this situation, the Secretary of Potiskum Local Government Council and Chairman of the Task Force on Revenue Collection, Idris Modu Bah, clarified that the government’s decision should not be interpreted as a conflict.

He said: “This is a decision of the Local Government management, which decided that N10,000 should be the new revenue rate.

“We invited the concerned dealers for a meeting which saw the intervention of the Security Adviser to Yobe State Governor and other security agencies, they insisted on reduction after agreeing with the resolutions of the earlier meeting to pay ₦7,000.”

Naija News understands that Yobe State is one of the largest livestock producers, and Potiskum Cattle Market is considered one of the largest in West Africa.