In a swift efforts to put an end to the economic crisis ravaging the country and States of the Federation, the Edo State House of Assembly has taken a giant stride to avert the lingering economic hardship by enacting necessary laws capable of improving the status of the State Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) so as to make life more abundant and worthy of living for the citizenry.
The lawmakers made the pledge while on the Financial/facility to the Edo State Internal Revenue Service recently. The delegation of the State Parliament led by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Victor Edoror and other Principal Officers of the State House Assembly were seriously concerned about the state of the nation’s economy especially on the continued dwindling Federal Allocation to the States over the years which according to them have rendered many States to financial bankruptcy and insolvency.
The State legislator expressed displeasure over the inability of some States to pay their workforce, lauding the untiring efforts and financial prudency put up by the administration of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole since his inception in Office.
Speaking during the Parliamentary visit to the agency, the Speaker maintained that the house was concerned being the representatives of all the people of Edo State in respect to the current financial incapability that has thrown the entire country into indebtedness and as well portraying some states in bad light of economic downturn. He stressed that there is a need to urgently salvage the downtrend of the economic misfortune before it snowballs into insurmountable forces by putting both human and material resources together to enhance and boost the state’s economy for the betterment of all citizens.
The Speaker emphasized that though, the State under the watch of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole was trying his best in ensuring the prompt payment of workers’ salaries. “The current administration has been working round the clock to entrench the effective cordial relationship with arms of government in a bid to ensure that priority was given to the workforce as part of its constitutional designated responsibilities”, the Speaker said.
He added that there is a need for the state lawmakers to improve on the policies and programmes of the state government and as well look critically into the finances of the state so as to bring about legislation that would improve the rapid well being of the people.
Asking on the challenges facing members of the State Internal Revenue Service towards the improvement of the state Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the Speaker reiterated that if the resources that are accrual to the state were properly harnessed, there is no need for the state to have any financial crisis as the state is blessed with abundant God-given natural resources buoyant enough to cater for its citizenry.
“The significance of our visit to the management of this government agency (EIRS) is to look inwardly into the finances of the state, identifying the problems facing EIRS, finding proper solutions to the problems in order to bring the state finances to the point of administering the state successfully without any hindrance and as well form a formidable collaboration with the EIRS,” he said.
The legislators however commended the agency for its relentless efforts in carrying out it saddled responsibilities, charging it not to deviate from its constitutional cause as the state is looking forward to improve the level of its Internally Generated Revenue.
“In line with the record we have from what we get from the Federation Account, if not because of the EIRS, I don’t think this state would have been where it is today. I am aware especially last month, what came to the state as allocation and how we needed to get money from EIRS to pay workers’ salaries in the state.
“We want to harness every opportunity by evolving laws that will encourage, guide and protect all citizens so that the state can move forward as at the period where the legislative oversight functions are urgently required to find necessary solutions to the current economic crunch bedeviling the country,” he noted.
Commending the state legislative members, the Executive Chairman, Edo State Internal Revenue Service, Mr. Oseni Elamah described the visit as a unique move to liberate the state from the menace of economic setback and foster mutual relationship between the legislature and other government agencies. Chief Elamah asserted that the visit would strengthen the agency in carrying out its functions and give it an impetus to multiply its efforts towards effective generation of IGR as its primary duty.
The EIRS boss assures that the agency would do everything humanly possible under the ambit of the law to optimize revenue generation in the way and manner that will give room for transparency, accountability and openness so as to maximize the expected target.
“I want to assure you that we will do everything to ensure that we carry out the mandate in accordance with the provision of the tax law which your house graciously enacted. The Edo State Revenue Administration Law which gave us the mandate to operate an autonomous and professional agency of government so as to ensure that we optimize the revenue generation in such a way that would be considered being transparent, accountable, impartial and as well as bring about value for every taxpayer’s money accruing to government in a bid to build a tax friendly environment.
“Without any gain saying, going by what the state EIRS has done so far in line with the state economic prudency, we have exceeded even those states that have various sources of income especially the oil producing states in terms of creative way of revenue generation,” he said.
He however commended the state governor for his high sense of political leadership and rare demonstration on the fact that the taxpayers’ money was rightfully channeled for the purpose to which it was meant for. He noted that the agency is working assiduously to partner with relevant agencies and institutions in ensuring that all hands are simply on deck at taking the state to the greater heights that everyone yearns for.
“We were able to record the success in the past due to the fact that the state is blessed with a comrade governor that has demonstrated the courage and inspired us to be able to generate the results as the state is presently seen and known to be one of the successful IGR States that are paying workers their salary arrears regularly.
“The commendation goes to the governor who had intensified efforts to improving every sector of the economy so as to bring prompt dividends of democracy to the people without any sense of discrimination, and most of the projects executed in the state were carried out through the taxpayers’ money accrued to the state,”.
Chief Elamah disclosed that if the state adequately mustered its energies and focus its attentions on the necessary areas that have been neglected the state is capable of generation N10billion every month.
Analyzing the challenges facing the agency, the chairman of the board, emphasized many laws have been passed by the State House of Assembly in recent times but were not enforced. He affirms that some of the bills if they are properly enforced, they would gone a long way in improving the level of the State’s Economy.
Some of the laws include; the Land Use Charge Law, Passenger Welfare Insurance, Consumption Tax among others were constitutionally evolved at generating revenue to the state coffers but unfortunately, they were not enforced to meet the expected benefits.
“It is our strong belief that the State House of Assembly will look at these laws and fine-tune it because the agency of government that are more or less mandated to implement these laws are no longer the way they were,” he said.
The chairman therefore implored the legislators to use the legislative powers at their disposal in order to influence the prompt compliance of tax payment in the state and as well collaborating with the agency in sensitizing and enlightening the public of their various constituencies on the need to abide strictly with the regular tax payment so as to assist the government in providing essential services to the citizens.
“We have a great future and we want to build structures that will enable us to put an end to the current economic sufferings and provide a sustainable revenue administration that will become one of the outstanding legacies of the comrade Oshiomhole led administration in the state,”.
Meanwhile the state legislator toured round the newly renovated Corporate Headquarters, Sunny Okundia Ultramodern Training School, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), Bio-metric Registration Centre, among others.
