In order to boost revenue, the President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has called on the Federal Inland Revenue Service to expose tax evaders by making public their identities, and at the same time appreciate companies and individuals who faithfully fulfil their tax payment obligations.
Dangote gave the advice in Lagos on Thursday at a stakeholders’ engagement forum organised by the FIRS.
His advice came just as the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, decried the high rate of tax evasion in the country.
“The FIRS should organise an annual event where it will present certificates of good behaviour to those that pay their taxes regularly, while naming and shaming those that have done badly. This will help essentially. Ordinarily, if you don’t use force, many people will not come forward,” he said.
The billionaire businessman also urged the Federal Government to go after oil companies that were cheating on government through high project costs.
“We should be collecting more taxes. Today most of the oil companies, though they pay 85 per cent of Petroleum Profit Tax and royalty, but what they do is to collect the money on the other side by raising their project costs. What is to cost $10, they will make it $30. The government should check that,”
Dangote said
The full article first appeared in the Punch
Comment
It’s a good advice. However, coming from a major shareholder of one of the most profitable companies in the country that pays no tax (due to its pioneer status) sounds a bit strange to me.
Clearly Dangote Cement avoids tax which is not illegal unlike tax evasion which is a crime.
