Benue Hits N500 Million IGR Target-----Ayabam.

 

Benue State Government has achieved its N500 million internally generated revenue monthly set target, while it has also set a billion naira revenue target monthly as from January 2011.

The Chairman, Benue State Board of Internal Revenue, Mr. Andrew Ayabam, who said this, added that since assumption of office some months ago, he had raised the revenue profile of the state from N120 million monthly to N500 million.



He expects that by January next year, we would have achieved a target of N1 billion monthly," he said.

Ayabam explained that the board had embarked on tax payers' education as well as coordination collection process as strategy towards realizing this goal.

He regretted that situationwhereby ministries, departments and agencies (MDGs) were collecting revenues indiscriminately and not remitting same into the state coffers, saying the money were misappropriated.

The chairman further said the board had plugged all loopholes of siphoning taxes by government officials by insisting that all revenue due to the state government be paid into bank accounts, adding that they had employed the services of all banks resident in the state as collecting agents for the board.

"We have a situation now where ministries, departments and agencies must remit taxes collected, must be deposited into government approved banks. We are building up a database that will aid us for continuity and sustainability of the entire process," Ayabam said.

He expressed delight that these measures had worked out effectively as tax payers no longer have difficulties in paying their taxes.

"As you go to the bank to transact other businesses, you could also make your tax payment or issue your instruction for deductions by the bank," Ayabam stressed