The Sokoto State governor, Ahmed Aliyu has disclosed that the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) has increased from N2.6bn to N3.8bn in less than one year.
Governor Aliyu stated this while addressing the Annual Conference of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) in Abuja.
He said the tremendous improvement recorded in the state’s IGR was as a result of the formidable measures introduced by his administration on tax collection and management.
“When we came on board, the taxation system we met was not very encouraging due to sharp practices that bedevilled both the collection and utilisation of the internally generated revenue.
“We then introduced measures that sanitised the entire system of revenue collection and management in the state,” he added
As a result of the rise in the IGR, the Governor said his administration was able to raise more funds which are being used judiciously to improve the quality of lives of the electorate.
He added that the present administration has executed various people-oriented projects cutting across roads network, water supply, empowerment programmes and improvement of the health conditions of the people of the state, among others.
Governor Aliyu assured the CITN of his administration’s commitment to collaborate with the body to further enhance tax collection in the state.
The President of CITN, Samuel Agbeluyi, described taxation as an essential tool in meeting the demands of the citizenry, hence the need for the conference to explore more ways through which tax collection can be enhanced in the country.
Agbeluyi said the annual conference was organised to discuss extensively how to improve on the mandate of the taxation body.
