IGR And Drive To Kill Nigerians

BY IGBONEKWU OGAZIMORAH
Recently, the other day, it was celebrated in the media that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) had netted N2 trillion in its internally generated revenue drive. But, how many Nigerians tried to understand how this staggering amount was made? As in every Nigeria public enterprise, heads had to roll to achieve this huge sum. Businesses were dismantled and jobs shoved off existence by these tax men on prowl.

Do not get me wrong. Never say that I do not want Nigerians to pay taxes, a thing oil dependence dudes favour so strongly. I wish there is a proper taxation regime that gets the money from the people who should pay taxes and let alone those who have to basically survive to mature to face the tax task masters.

Now, take for instance what happens in most states in Nigeria. Taxation is multiple and bears no known definition. There is the personal income tax, which aside what is definite, as such deducted from civil servants can be anything assumed by the so called tax assessors. Then, for very small businesses, it is multifarious. State environmental levy, which is not the same as state waste disposal levy, which in turn is not the same as state waste and pollution levy. Then, there is State health hazard levy, state fire service levy, capitation levy, state property levy, state business premises levy, local government signage levy, local government business premises levy, ministry of commerce business permit, housing estates development levy, state ground rents, etc. And there is VAT of each of these.

Now, make your calculations. How many businesses, starting on N100,000, can survive this in a year? These taxes start immediately you open your doors for business. Many of these have evolving other taxes in them. For instance, those in hotel businesses will have to pay VAT for every given out and in many cases, the figures are imposed by tax task masters.

You pay VAT while buying beer to sell, and you pay VAT for each bottle you sold. You pay VAT or most items you buy and when you sell, you pay VAT. There is no single State, especially in the South that is exempted. Every State wants to make huge sums for the spending of politicians in government. Nobody cares to understand that these taxes, uncoordinated as they are; fraudulent as they are; thuggish as they are extracted and exerted, cause many businesses to close shop.

I was part of a team that investigated the impacts of these in six states of the federation. No line of business is spared. In one case, a hotelier lamented that local government thugs, parading as tax enforcers, once carted away his 14 units of split system air conditioners. Another lost 13 flat screen televisions, and yet another had his operational vehicle impounded and removed to only God-knows- where.

Most often, there were no formal demand notices. There were hardly any expectations of the development leading to these seizures. Indeed, in one case, it was found that there were over three kinds of taxes emanating from the ministry of health of that state. There were three from ministry of environments: fire services, waste disposal and anti – pollution. In another state, the ministry of education taxes every business on ‘educational development levy, educational infrastructure levy, public schools rehabilitation levy, state university accreditation levy. Yet, in another state, there is an earth excavation levy, construction site levy, building permit levy, local government building levy, site emission levy, etc.

It was really embarrassing listening to all these. The strange thing about these is that some are even denied as existing in some states, yet there has been no arrests and prosecution. Somebody would say, “oh yes, those tax drivers are given employment.” But that is an assertion in flight of reasons. Many businesses go down for these.

And that also meant loss of thousands of jobs. Six of the hotels examined in a state threw 220 university graduates into the labour market and the proprietors are down to ground zero.
Who then is fooling who?