Tax On Dead: “People Can No Longer Rest In Peace” – Shehu Sani

Former Senator Shehu Sani has voiced strong opposition to the Enugu State government’s recent decision to impose a mortuary tax on unburied corpses. 

In a post on the X platform on Sunday, Sani expressed his outrage, stating, “Taxing dead bodies in Enugu finally means people can no longer rest in peace.”

The tax, announced by the state’s revenue agency, mandates a fee of N40 per day for corpses not buried within 24 hours. 

The decision has sparked criticism, though the government clarified that the tax was not aimed at generating revenue but intended to discourage long-term storage of bodies in mortuaries.

The Executive Chairman of Enugu State Internal Revenue Service, Mr. Emmanuel Nnamani, explained that the measure aligns with the state’s Birth, Deaths, and Burials Law Cap 15 of 2004. 

He urged mortuary operators to ensure payments are made before corpses are released for burial, with the funds being remitted to the state’s Internal Revenue Service account.