President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday insisted that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has the sole authority to collect Value Added Tax (VAT) for the federal government.

Mr Buhari spoke in Abuja when he declared open the second National Tax Dialogue Week, with the theme: “Tax Harmonisation for Enhanced Revenue Generation”.

Mr Buhari expressed his regime’s commitment to an efficient tax administration in the country.

“On our part, we have started by clarifying in the 2021 Finance Act that FIRS is the sole authority to administer tax for the Federal Government,” he said.

Last year, the Rivers state government dragged the federal government to court over collection of VAT in the state.

But Mr Buhari said it was pertinent to make the clarifications so as to prevent taxpayers from being burdened with multiple tax compliance obligations. 

He expressed concern that the current tax system in the country was characterised by fragmented administration, multiple and sometimes, overlapping taxes.

“In most tax-efficient nations, tax administrative processes and practices are harmonised within a single system.

”Multiplicity of tax administration is as undesirable as multiplicity of taxes, it creates uncertainty and instability and above all, it is inefficient,” the president said.

Mr Buhari also stressed the need to maximise domestic revenue within the extant tax policy and laws in the face of dwindling revenues from commodities.

He, therefore, proposed improved tax revenue for the country which would not necessarily impose new tax rates on Nigerians.

“We all know that good intentions are not enough as they simply cannot pay for infrastructure, security or social amenities. We must, therefore, improve tax revenue without necessarily raising new taxes.

“Revenue from commodities, including crude oil, are too volatile and unreliable.  Therefore, I pledge the government’s support for any viable initiative for improving tax revenue that should emanate from this dialogue,” he said.

On Nigeria’s Tax-to-GDP ratio, the president declared that the country also needs to do more in securing a buoyant domestic revenue base of the country.

This, according to him, will bequeath an enduring economic foundation, political stability and social harmony to the next generation.

(NAN)