By Our Correspondent
Kaduna State Commissioner for Planning and Budget Commission ,PBC, Mr Mukhtar Ahmed says the state has the capacity to generate N150 billion revenues monthly through improved tax compliance.
Ahmed said this on Wednesday at a stakeholders’ engagement organised by the Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service ,KADIRS.
A Collaborative Strategy for Sustainable Growth through a Centralised Payment Gateway in Kaduna State”.
He said automation of collection system, inter-agency collaboration and vigorous sensitisation were critical to achieve desired targets.
According to Ahmed, tax compliance is a major issue in revenue generation in the state.
“Look at all the beautiful houses in Kaduna and the businesses, we need to support the government by paying our taxes.
“There is a possibility where what is coming from the centre may dry up one day, and we are approaching a stage where people are becoming aware of needs on what they want the government to do for them.
“It has to do with partnership now between the citizens and the government where it can only work if the state has money, and where is that money?
“Government does not only come up to disclose amounts that are coming, even the one coming from the federal is just a budget, sometimes it doesn’t come depending on the situation”, he said.
Ahmed said that a stable Internally Generated Revenue ,IGR, would made it easy for the state to work and support the citizens to pay their tax.
He stressed that no budget functioned without revenue, any budget that didn’t have a revenue side was nothing but a dream.
The Commissioner said, the Ministry has focused on revenue generating agencies and identified 13 of them each with a N1 billion monthly revenue target.
“We meet quarterly and sometimes before the quarter ends, to see how we can work together to bring out programmes and address challenges to enable them to meet their targets”, Ahmed said.
On tax laws, Ahmed said the ground for revenue generation has been set in company of competent officers who were ready to work with tax payers to encourage compliance.
“Now, we have the platform which is the payment gateway and also the needed support from the government”.
While urging revenue generating agencies to minimise tax waivers, Ahmed enjoined residents of the state to be more productive and engage in export.
Mr Ali Gora, Executive Director, Standards and Compliance, KADIRS, said the exercise was designed to educate the stakeholders on its operations and get their feedback.
He said that it also aim to expose the stakeholders to the importance of tax payment as well as share ideas on how to improve tax administration in the state.
“We want the people to begin to understand the reason for voluntary compliance in tax payment”, he said.
The Service, he said, unveiled a payment platform tagged: ‘Pay Kaduna Portal’, to enhance access to tax information and ease payment processes.
Also speaking, Dr Muhammad Lawal, Executive Director, Corporate Services, KADIRS, said the introduction of the tax portal had checked payment of taxes through multiple platforms.
He said the Service had consolidated tax payment under one platform making it easier, cheaper and faster for people to access its services and make payments.
Lawal urged the citizens to pay their tax voluntarily and desist from tax evasion, warning that tax evasion and non compliance negatively affect the revenue line.
“On our part, we provide the means for payment, assessment and collection that make it easier for tax payers to comply”, he said.
