BY GLORIA USMAN, ABUJA – The Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) and the Joint Tax Board (JTB) are to establish a Joint Reconciliation Team to reconcile variation observed in the monthly PAYE tax remittances.
This is as the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Mr Ahmed Idris stressed the need for collaboration, partnership and synergy between his office and the Joint Tax Board, adding that his office will continue to do everything possible to ensure that the two agencies attain their mandates.
Idris announced this when the Secretary of the Joint Tax Board (JTB), Obomeghie Nana-Aisha led members of the Board on a visit to him as contained in a statement by the Director of Information, Press and Public Relations in the office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Mr Henshaw Ogubike.
Idris, said the Joint Reconciliation Team will comprise of officers from both agencies and will sit monthly to resolve issues concerning non-remittances and variations observed in remittance of monthly PAYE tax.
According to Idris; “All matters concerning non-remittances, figures not agreeing on month by month basis as far as deductions are concerned, can easily be addressed if we have a common joint reconciliation team that will be sitting monthly.
“The team will be made up of officers from the OAGF and the JTB. Let there be an established team that will be looking at these figures”, he said.
While responding to the Secretary of the JTB’s observation regarding fluctuation and inconsistencies in PAYE tax remittance, Idris explained that variations in figures from time to time could be due to many legitimate reasons, adding that such differences are always corrected through reconciliation of records.
He further said; “There are many legitimate reasons why variation arise from time to time. It is known to us as accountants that figures will never be the same from one period to another. That is why in accounting, reconciliation exercise is recognised so that figures are harmonised and the cause of the variations are revealed”.
