Bauchi State government has moved to secure a bond of N100 billion to complete ongoing development projects.
Consequently, the Bala Mohammed administration has resolved to raise its revenue generation to between N5 billion and N7 billion monthly.
Already, the state commissioner for finance, Dr Yakubu Adamu, has directed the State Board of Internal Revenue to raise the amount, saying it was a marching order given him by the governor.
The commissioner who gave the directive at the inauguration of the board on Monday, said its members have a huge task ahead of them.
He said, “We are all gathered here today for a purpose, we all have one schedule or the other but due to the importance of the inauguration of the Board, we feel that it is very important for all of us to come together in order to inaugurate the Board properly.”
Adamu said the governor has carefully chosen them based on their expertise and knowledge, as well as their individual contributions to the development of the state.
He added that, “Based on that, we are all aware that you are not just being selected because you are better than anybody, no, it is just a rare privilege for us to serve our dear state. And for every action there must be a reaction.”
The commissioner explained that Governor Mohammed has high regard for the members, adding that there is no other institution in the state that he had so much interest and confidence in than the BIRS.
“If you recall, when we came in August 2023, the Governor mandated us to finance some of the projects he is willing to do within the state and a bond was raised of almost N100b.
“In our first meeting, we sat down with him and he said that he does not want anybody to finance the projects with the state reserve fund, he clearly made it known that he wants us to finance the N100b projects with our internally generated revenue.
“So, from there, the challenge has started, his vision is for us to be generating between N5b to N7b on monthly basis, that is why if you noticed, you would have seen a lot of transformation in the BIRS and it is ongoing.
We have changed our former Consultant after writing a report on the situation of our collections and he gave us the go ahead to engage another competent Consultant that can carry out the task properly,” he said.
The commissioner therefore urged the board members to see their selection as a means of paying their dues to the state, either directly or indirectly, stressing, “We are the beneficiaries, we have seen what is going on within the state, infrastructure development are all over and the citizens are all happy in every nook and cranny you enter.”
On behalf of the members of the board, the chairman, Mu’azu Usman, commended the governor for reposing confidence in them by reappointing them into the board for another term to drive the IGR.
He said that the mandate given by the governor is realizable considering the potentials available in the state saying that with the coming of the administration of Governor Bala Mohammed the IGR has risen to a significant amount monthly.
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