The Amalgamated Union of Foodstuff and Cattle Dealers of Nigeria (AUFCDN) has decried the multiple taxes imposed on them on South-East and South-South highways.

The national president of AUFCDN, Mohammed Tahir, made this known during a meeting of the union in Enugu on Monday to enhance market operations and promote their welfare.

Mr Tahir blamed the high cost of food commodities in the South-East on multiple taxations.

He noted that the multiple taxations perpetrated by illegal collectors on the road were seriously discouraging its members from transporting foodstuff and cattle to the southeast and south-south.

According to him, our members are mandated to pay revenue at the loading and off-loading points, which is observed in the South-West and the north.

“However, our members transporting foodstuff and cattle from the north to south-south and southeast regions are facing many challenges on the road like collection of multiple taxations.

“Some of the monies collected in the name of state revenue are not remitted to the government but go into individual pockets. So, we need to fight these illegal collections.

“For example, from Maiduguri to Lagos, there is no challenge. After we pay revenue from the loading point in Maiduguri, we do not pay any in Yobe, Bauchi, Jigawa, Kano, Kaduna, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun down to Lagos.

“But if you coming to south-south and southeast from Maiduguri, if you enter Benue, Cross River Ebonyi, Abia, Imo, Rivers down to Bayelsa or Imo, Abia down to Enugu, Anambra, Edo or Delta, it is too challenging.

“They are collecting money more than we agree. Like if you buy N250,000 cow in Adamawa, before we reach here, the price of the cow would be around N500,000 because of the expenses on the road”, Mr Tahir said.

While urging the governors of the two geopolitical zones to urgently look into the situation, the president promised to support them to generate revenue from their members.

In his remarks, the Enugu State commissioner for agriculture, Patrick Ubru, represented by Segun Olukoya, a consultant in charge of revenue collection in the ministry, said the government had introduced e-ticketing to eliminate illegal collection of taxes.

Mr Burundi said that aside from the introduction of e-ticketing, the government was determined to harmonise taxes to equally eliminate the multiple taxation, which was affecting businesses in the state.

He urged the cattle and foodstuff dealers to ensure that their tax payments were vended online, urging them not to pay anyone who refused to vend their payment.

(NAN)