The Borno State Internal Revenue Service (BOIRS) says the tax policies in the state encourage ease of doing business.
Mr John Audu, the BOIRS Head Of Revenue Operation, made this known on Wednesday in an interview with newsmen in Maiduguri.
Audu said that unlike other states that introduced special taxes and collect multiple levies, particularly on transportation, the Borno government has maintained
existing taxes being recieved for many years.
He listed some of the existing taxes to include; Personal Income Tax, Pay-As-You-Earn, taxes from self employed persons (Direct Assessment), Capital Gains
Tax, Stamp duties, Business Premises levy and withholding taxes.
He added that “even if we are to introduce new taxes, we first of all consider its severity on tax payers.
“We tried to look at it, if it has any elements of what was already captured, then we advise government to reconsider its position.
“If you mount all sorts of taxes on an individual who has only one source of income, you are making the business of that person to suffer.
“All these are to ensure ease of doing business for investors, entrepreneurs, business-oriented persons, as well as safeguard the interests of customers
of these businesses.”
Audu explained that it would also reduce the cost of doing business and enhance growth and development in the state.
He said that the state’s internal revenue service had recorded tremendous successes in tax administration and revenue collection in the past few years.
He added that the establishment of the Borno State Traffic Management Agency (BOTMA) also strengthened the revenue generation of the agency
and mitigated accidents on the roads.
“The state government established BOTMA to prevent road mishaps and to punished traffic violators by asking them to pay a certain penalty,” he said.
Also, the Chairman of Borno Chambers of Commerce, Alhaji Ahmed Aishemi, in a separate interview with newsmen , stressed the need to streamline,
particularly between the states and local governments, how to address the problem of multiple taxation in some states.
He said that such taxation and other forms of extortion along the roads contributed to inflation in prices of goods.
He added that “all the problems end on consumers of goods because it would be reflected on prices, as the driver would also charge the owner of the goods more to enable him pay.”
Aishemi said that in Borno where multiple taxation was not all that pronounced, the main issue was that of insecurity that affected smooth transportation and transaction of businesses in some areas of the state.