Gov. Fubara Opens 156th Tax Meeting In Port Harcourt
By Katherine Abayomi.
Rivers state Governor Sir Siminalayi Fubara declared the 156th Joint tax Board meeting open on Wednesday 11th ,2024 in Port Harcourt
The theme is “Opportunities and Strategies for improved taxation of high Net Worth Individuals in Nigeria. ”
Speaking in the meeting Governor Fubara stated that his administration will not over-budget the people ,residents and business with excess levies and taxes.That the most tenable solution to strengthening the capacity of the state is to maximize tax revenue collections at all levels and across sectors.
He further stated that it will burden struggling national economy and in turn minimize inflation on state governments. He stated the increasing lack of adequate resources available to state governments and that it will be difficult for government to carry out its obligations.
However he mentioned that modest success have been achieved in effective collections and utilisation of revenue and it has continued to collect from tax paying public.
He said: “In Rivers State, our approach is not to impose more taxes on our people but to broaden our tax base without increasing the rates, which has enabled us to generate more internal revenues as evident in the increasing collection figures on a month-by-month basis.
“Apart from keeping us above water, we are responsibly using the much-improved tax collections to fund critical infrastructure, including roads, schools, security, and healthcare across the
He said as an institution, the Board should continue to address itself to efforts at repealing obsolete policies, promotion of cooperation among tax authorities across the country, and provision of training, peer review, and best practices for State Revenue Agencies.
Governor Fubara, therefore, challenged them to use the occasion to focus on exploring opportunities and strategies that will improve the taxation of high net-worth individuals in Nigeria, and also urged them to come up with policy measures that will encourage the super-rich to pay fair taxes voluntarily while channelling their excess resources into productive economic building investments.
He said, “This is the way to build a stronger, broader tax revenue-based economy for our country; one that encourages the production of more wealth, shared economic growth, opportunities, and prosperity for everyone.”
In his welcome address, Executive Chairman, Rivers State Internal Revenue Service, Dr Chibeoso Aholu, said the State is delighted to host, for the first time, the Joint Tax Board Meeting, and thanked Governor Fubara for his support towards its success, while expressing the hope that the meeting will streamline policy suggestions and strategies to help governments at all levels to improve their revenues.