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New FIRS boss vows to raise tax revenue

By on August 27, 2015

The Acting Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Mr. Babatunde Fowler, has formally assumed office pledging to use partnership with the relevant stakeholders to shore up the tax revenue and improve on the country’s tax administration.

Fowler, according to a statement issued by the FIRS and signed by the Assistant Director, Communications & Servicom Department, Nneka Ifekwuna, made this known when he took over the mantle of leadership from the outgoing Acting Executive Chairman of FIRS, Mr. Sunday Ogungbesan.

Fowler said the new change in leadership of the service was predicated upon the resolve of the Presidency to ensure maximum increase in tax revenue as the era of absolute dependency on oil proceeds was over.

Fowler said that the FIRS must take the lead in the tax revenue collection and must be ready to share information and ideas with the states’ boards of internal revenue in order to take tax administration in the country to the next level.

The statement quoted him to have said, “My vision and mission are neither to alter the existing management organogram structure in FIRS nor lay off management staff, but to take FIRS as well as the nation’s tax system to an enviable height.

“This we cannot achieve all alone without a robust partnership and collaboration of all stakeholders within and outside the system.

“We must build a synergy for a healthy exchange of information between FIRS and SBIR.

“This synergy will produce the best form of revenue generation in the FIRS and the states in general as well as ensuring that overdependence on oil revenue becomes a thing of the past.”

He said that the antidote to the economic downturn was for the service to raise revenue accruing from tax collection to “record high” so that government’s programmes would be well funded.

Ogungbesan had solicited for more cooperation as FIRS shared a similar vision with Fowler saying, “the Chairman needs the support of all staff to succeed in the business of raising revenue and we must not lose sight of satisfying the government.’’

 

[Punch]