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Taxing The Dead: Enugu State Government Faces Backlash For Imposing Mortuary Tax On Corpses
According to Nwoye, the tax amounts to N40 per day for each body, which he believes is not only insensitive but also inhumane.
Dr. Ben Nwoye, former chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Enugu State, has expressed his dismay over the state’s decision to tax dead bodies kept in mortuaries.
According to Nwoye, the tax amounts to N40 per day for each body, which he believes is not only insensitive but also inhumane.
Nwoye shared his personal experience of having to pay the tax when his mother-in-law passed away. “I didn’t understand it before until I had to pay N40 per day,” he said. “It’s not the amount that matters, but the concept. The idea that someone would think of taxing the bereaved as a means of raising funds is callous and inhumane.”
Nwoye, who spoke to SaharaReporters in an interview, questioned the logic behind taxing the dead when the living are still struggling to pay their taxes. “Have we finished taxing the living before we go into the dead?” he asked. “The living should pay their tax, those selling things they’re making money, you must have your tax paper, traders pay your income tax.”
The former APC chairman believes that the tax is insensitive and lacks a human face. “When you govern, you govern with a human face,” he said. “And I think that one lacks insensibility. It is insensitive, even if it is one kobo the tax.”
Nwoye emphasised that the tax is not just a financial burden but also an emotional one. “As Igbo, there is a way we relate with our dead, and if I’m told that for me to keep my deceased person for one day I have to pay N40, it gets to me,” he said.
He also pointed out that the mortuary attendants already pay taxes to the state and federal government. “The mortuary people are mortuary attendants, they also have to pay the state tax, they have to pay the federal tax,” Nwoye said. “Now we are taxing the bereaved.”
Nwoye believes that the state government should focus on taxing the living rather than the dead. “We raise funds by directly taxing the bereaved for keeping the body of their deceased loved ones?” he asked. “Then you pay N40. I don’t think it’s right.”
He, however, called on the state government to review and reconsider the tax. “So, it’s something they have to go back and review and look at it,” he said.
Nwoye also questioned the calculation behind the tax. “Someone must have made an attempt in doing calculation of how many bodies that are left, how many deaths we have per year,” he said. “Because you have to budget for this.”
He believes that the tax is a sign of insensitivity and lack of empathy. “It has to be in paper, the estimate that maybe 200 people or 1000 people will die this month and will be kept in the morgue, you have to write,” Nwoye said.
Nwoye emphasised that the tax is not acceptable in Igbo culture. “From our own concept, cultural concept, it is not acceptable,” he said. “Certain things don’t belong in this culture when you govern, you govern with a human face.”
He urged the state government to prioritise the welfare of its citizens over revenue generation. “I think the government should focus on providing essential services to the people rather than taxing the dead,” Nwoye said.
Nwoye’s statement has sparked a debate about the morality and feasibility of taxing dead bodies in Enugu State. Many are calling on the state government to reconsider the tax and prioritize the welfare of its citizens.
The state government has yet to respond to Nwoye’s statement, but the issue is likely to generate more controversy in the coming days.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Thursday, swore in General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd) as Minister of Defence at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
General Musa’s appointment follows the resignation of Alhaji Mohammed Badaru Abubakar on Monday, December 1, 2025. His nomination was announced the following day and transmitted to the Senate, where it received expedited screening and confirmation.
Born in Sokoto in 1967, General Musa was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant into the Nigerian Army in 1991 and had a distinguished military career. He was appointed Chief of Defence Staff by President Tinubu in 2023 and retired in October 2025.
As Chief of Defence Staff, he championed inter-service security collaboration.
With his swearing-in, the new Defence Minister is expected to immediately assume duties as the Tinubu administration seeks to consolidate recent security gains and fast-track reforms aimed at achieving lasting peace and stability nationwide.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, Chairman, Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, Sen. Adeniyi Adegbonmire, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Also in attendance were the spouse of the new Minister, Mrs Lilian Oghogho Musa; Chief of Defense Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede; Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Matthew Hassan Kukah; and Justice Kumai Bayang Akaahs (rtd).
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has said it has appealed the judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, which ordered the release of twenty-seven houses to James Ibechukwu Okoye and his company.
In the Notice of Appeal filed at the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal, the Commission expressed dissatisfaction with the decision of the trial court, which was delivered on October 31, 2025.
EFCC counsel, Abba Mohammed, SAN, sought two orders from the Court of Appeal, which include; Staying the execution of the judgment of the trial court pending the hearing and determination of the appeal; and such further or other orders as the court may deem fit to make in the circumstances.
Meanwhile, the Commission said it felt obliged to correct the distortions and misrepresentations contained in a news story titled “EFCC Invades Abuja Property Despite Court Order Restraining Agency, Awarding N20 million To Jona Brothers”.
It explained in a statement on X that the Abuja property, Plot 680-689 Cadastral Zone B06, Mabushi, Abuja, referenced in the report, is a subject of criminal charge before Justice A.I Kutigi of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court .
However, the EFCC said it sought and secured an order of interim forfeiture of the property before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja pending the determination of the criminal charge before Justice Kutigi.
“In granting the order, the court authorized the EFCC to ‘appoint competent persons/ firm to manage the assets/properties listed in the schedule therein, temporarily forfeited to the Federal Government pending the conclusion of investigation and determination of criminal charges against the suspect,’”
“It is also important to point out that the criminal charge struck out by Justice Osho Adebiyi and the N20m cost she awarded is not in any way connected to the interim order.
“In addition, the enforcement of the interim forfeiture order of the property by the Commission is without prejudice to ongoing appeals on court pronouncements about the true ownership of the property. The appeals are ongoing and the EFCC is diligently attending proceedings.”
The Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun has reaffirmed the commitment of the country’s judiciary to protection of human rights as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution and other international laws and treaties.
She emphasized that the judiciary remains steadfast in its constitutional mandate to uphold the rule of law and protect the rights of citizens.
The CJN spoke on Thursday at the conference on ‘Proportional Force and Respect for Human Dignity: A Dialogue in Governance’, organized by the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, in collaboration with Citizen FM.
The Administrator of the National Judicial Institute, NJI, Justice Babatunde Adeniran Adejumo, represented the Chief Justice of Nigeria at the conference.
In the goodwill message, Justice Kekere-Ekun congratulated the National Human Rights Commission on its 30th anniversary and commended the organizers for holding the conference on International Human Rights Day.
She emphasized that when authority is exercised with restraint, discipline, and accountability, it strengthens public trust and reinforces the legitimacy of institutions.
The CJN reiterated the judiciary’s commitment to protecting human rights and providing remedies where they are infringed.
“Let me make it abundantly clear that the judiciary remains steadfast in its constitutional mandate to uphold the rule of law and protect the rights of citizens,” she said.
The CJN further commended the NHRC for promoting dialogue and awareness on critical human rights issues in Nigeria.
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