By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse
The Jigawa state Internal Revenue Service (JIRS) has accused some revenue generatiing agencies of sabotage in local revenue collection in the state.
The executive chairman of services, Malam Nasir Sabo Idris gave the indication at the launch of Jigawa Enlightenment and Engagement Team (JEET) with the aim of improving revenue generation in the state.
The executive chairman lamented over the lackadaisical attitude of most of the revenue generating agencies in the state towards their mandate of revenue and tax collection.
He also alleged that the little they collected some times are not remitted to the government account.
Malam Nasir Sabo Idris who also observed that the agencies were also not represented at the launching of Jigawa Enlightenment and Engagement Team (JEET), despite timely invitation extended to them
He attributed the continued decline of internally generated revenue in the state to inadequate tax payers enlightenment and engagement in addition to poor commitment by tax and revenue collectors.
According to him with the new strategies applied in modernizing and digitizing tax collection system, the board is targeting to increase the revenue generation by twenty percent in the first quarter of 2024.
The Chairman expressed the optimism that they will increase the state ‘s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) by sixty percent at the end of next year adding that it will be doubled in the next two years.
According him, the JEET team is aimed at creating more awareness, understanding and cordial relationship between the tax payers and tax collectors in the state with the hope it will block all leakages and tax fraudulent collection.
Malam Idris maintained that the JEET would digitize taxpayers registration as well as enlighten the tax payers about electronic payment to avoid any fraudulent practice.
“Though I’m newly appointed as chairman of the board but we estimated that in 2024 the board would be able to generate N42 billion, and if the leakages are blocked we will double the tax collection by the end of this administration” ,he said.
The chairman identified some duties of the JEET to include tax payers education and enlightenment, registration of tax payers, engagement with stakeholders and Data collection, effective handling of media information among others.
He called on workers union, MDAs and all other stakeholders to cooperate with the team to achieve the desired objectives of moving Jigawa state forward.