…calls on other governors to emulate him
The Chairman of the Joint Tax Board (JTB), Mr.
Tunde Fowler, on Monday commended Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, of for
putting in place a proficient and “unparalleled” tax regime, which he said has
ensured that the state exceeded the 15 percent tax revenue to GDP benchmark
suggested by the United Nations for the funding of budgets.
The JTB chairman, who is also the Chairman of
Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), also applauded Ugwuanyi for the
unprecedented growth in the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state as
well as the judicious utilisation of the said funds for the rapid development
of the state.
Fowler, who spoke at the 141st meeting of the board
in Enugu, which had in attendance chairmen of the Board of Internal Revenue
from the 36 states of the federation, also lauded the governor for his quality
leadership, giant developmental strides in the state and “excellent”
hospitality.
He, therefore, called on other governors to emulate
Ugwuanyi’s measures in enhancing the efficiency and productivity of his state’s
Board of Internal Service for improved revenue profile in their various states.
The chairman stated that the objective of the
meeting with the theme: ‘Leveraging on ICT for Efficient Tax Administration and
Revenue Enhancements, Focusing on States IRS’, was to discuss tax matters and
how to provide better services as well as “look at contracts executed with tax
payers’ money.”
While further appreciating Ugwuanyi for his
effective utilisation of tax payers’ money for the rapid development of the
state, Fowler advised the visiting chairmen of BIR to share the experience with
their governors accordingly.
He said: “As you come to Enugu State, you can see
how tax monies are used. Following the testimony given by the Chairman of Board
of Internal Revenue of Enugu State, Mr. Emeka Odo, as a good friend, all the chairmen
are supposed to have the copies of advance sheets to their Governors for them
to see what was going on in Enugu State and how things are supposed to be done.”
He maintained that tax revenue is “no doubt the
only means to ensure sustainable economic and social development,” emphasising
their role “as tax administrators to carry out our duties diligently to ensure
that all the current tax revenue is collected as at when due.”
According to him, “Looking at the figures of Enugu
State, I would like to congratulate you (Ugwuanyi) that the state Internal
Revenue Service is living up to its responsibilities in the area of increasing
the state’s revenue base. It has exceeded this figure (UN 15 percent benchmark)
already.
“The measures you have taken to enhance the
efficiency of your Board in Enugu State are unparalleled. At this point, I call
on other governors to do what is being done in Enugu State, and if within six
months we cannot see any difference, we will say something is wrong.
“But, I am sure these measures taken by the Enugu
State Revenue Service, if taken by other state governors, our revenue profile
will improve tremendously.”
Declaring open the event, Ugwuanyi, who welcomed
the participants to the state, disclosed that his administration, in realising
the need to reduce its dependence on the then dwindling statutory receipts from
the Federation Account, “immediately embarked on the reform of public finances
in the state to align with our developmental priorities and realities.”
The governor added that the state government also
repositioned the state’s Internal Revenue Service through the appointment of a
board of seasoned professionals; establishment of new Revenue Courts; enactment
of the Land Use Assessment Appeal Tribunal Law and reorganisation of the board
to meet the required standards to deliver the desired results among others.
“We are glad to report that these measures have
made a tremendous impact on our revenue streams, enabling our IGR to peak at
N22 billion last year in contrast to the N14 billion we collected in the whole
of the 2016 fiscal year,” he added.
Ugwuanyi noted that his administration’s prudent
management of the state financial resources was responsible for the numerous
“unprecedented development programmes” it has implemented so far to make life
more meaningful for the people.
He stressed that with the lean receipts from the
Federation Accounts, the state government has continued to pay workers’
salaries on or before 25th of every month; paid all civil servants the 13th
month salary as Christmas bonus and the June salaries despite the non-receipt
of the FAAC allocation for the month.
The governor also used the occasion to appeal to
JTB chairman to intervene on the over N18 billion debt in back duty taxes
collectively owed the Enugu State Government by federal institutions and agencies,
namely: the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH); the University of
Nigeria Nsukka (UNN); the Federal Orthopedic Hospital Enugu; the Federal
Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital Enugu; the Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu;
the Project Development Institute (PRODA), Enugu; the National Orientation
Agency (NOA) and the National Examination Council (NECO).
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