The executive chairman of the Kogi State Board of Internal Revenue Services, Alhaji Yakubu Oseni has said that the Revenue Harmonization Bill before the State House of Assembly will address all the challenges of tax administration in the state if passed into law.
Alhaji Yakubu Oseni stated this on Wednesday in Lokoja when he appeared before the State Judicial Commission of Inquiry to give evidence over the activities of the board.
The executive chairman told the judicial panel that when the bill successfully scales through, issues of multiples taxation leakages and other fraudulent acts resulting to low revenue generation capacity of the state would be laid to rest.
He said the law that gave autonomy to the board which was enacted by an act of parliament in 2013 and domesticated by the state, only became operational on the assumption of Governor Yahaya Bello’s leadership in the state.
The executive chairman on the witness box presented details of salaries, imprests and expenditures of the Board to the commission to assist in its assignment.
He further revealed that the state government in its efforts to sanitize the tax administration in the state, terminated the contract agreement between it and a private company on the collection of forestry revenue because the company did not live up to its contractual terms.
On the issue of revenue expected from companies operating in the state, such as Dangote Cement Company at Obajana in Kogi state and others, the executive chairman disclosed that the Board had no access to documents concerning the agreement.
While responding, the Chairman of the Judicial Panel, Retired Justice Wada Omar who admitted the documents tendered in evidence, commended the executive chairman of the revenue services for his brilliant performance.
Justice Omar however, urged others who will appear before the commission to emulate the open revelations exhibited by the chairman to enable the commission succeed in its assignment.
