The Permanent Secretary Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Mr. Adesola Olusade says the decision to harmonise revenue and centralise collection to the FCT-Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) is in the interest of the territory and its people.
Olusade stated this while unveiling the strategic plan for delegation of duties and responsibilities of revenue collection to the FCT-Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) during a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja.
He explained that this decision was the culmination of extensive deliberation, meticulous analysis, and a steadfast commitment to enhancing the efficiency, transparency, and effectiveness of the territory’s revenue collection system.
He recalled that on Wednesday June 21, 2023 he led other stakeholders in a public presentation of the communiqué of the resolution retreat on the harmonisation of revenue collection in the FCTA.
According to him, the reactions of the Citizens to the presentation were salutary and revealed their great expectations, some of whom felt that the effort should have taken place “yesterday”. Indeed, we have attained a “point of no return” in this shared journey to promote sanity in the Territory.
FCT-IRS Acting Executive Chairman, Mr. Haruna Abdullahi, said the delegation of all revenue collection duties and responsibilities to a single entity, was borne out of the resolutions of the ‘Akure Accord’ which marked a significant step towards creating a more business-friendly environment that would attract investment, stimulate growth, and create job opportunities.
He said: “Centralising revenue collection under the FCT-IRS would eliminate the need for multiple entities to perform similar tasks and would reduce administrative overhead and allow for a more streamlined process.”
The FCT-IRS boss further stated that when a single entity is responsible for revenue collection, it would be easier to maintain oversight and ensure accountability as all transactions would be recorded and processed in one place, making it simpler to track and audit.
FCT ALGON Chairman, Mr. Danladi Chiya, pledged support and commitment to this harmonisation project, saying that the six area council chairmen would work to ensure FCT-IRS succeeds in this its new mandate.
