Safiu Kehinde
Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has made known his designed taxation plan targeted towards the increment of generated revenue in the state to three billion Naira per month.
The governor had, yesterday, taken to his Twitter handle to give a breakdown of his plan on how to achieve this feat after his inauguration of the Board of Anambra Internal Revenue Generation Service (AIRS).
While admitting that Internal Revenue Service is the life-blood of all government, Soludo decried the inability of the state to generate up to three billion naira monthly despite its five trillion naira economic worth.
“The Anambra state government should be making more than 3 billion naira per month, which is yet to happen, and the 2023 budget is expected to generate 4 billion naira per month, currently the State government is running a deficit on IGR.
“FAAC allocations are unpredictable, but we have an economy with an estimated value of up to 5 trillion naira.
“It is critical to highlight the enormous potentials that exist, as well as the appropriate benchmarks and targets.” Soludo said.
Analyzing how the taxation will help boost the state’s economy which currently struggle to generate one billion naira per month, Soludo said the state has the potential of earning 60 billion naira annually from one percent of tax generated out of the five trillion economic value.
A two percent increase, according to him, will see the state boasting of 120 billion naira per year while five percent taxation will amount to 300 billion naira per year for the state.
“As of Monday, we were dangling around 1 billion naira per month, which is extremely low. You can see how far we are doing in relation to the potentials that exist. The internal revenue service requires a 180 percent turnaround.
“If we have a 5 trillion naira estimate and collect 1%, that is 60 billion naira per year. If we collect 2%, that’s 120 billion naira per year, or a minimum of ten billion naira per month on average. If we receive 5% of income, we will have 300 billion naira per year.” He stressed further.
Meanwhile, Soludo urged the newly inaugurated board members led by Richard Madiebo to meet up with the task or risk being disbanded.
Also part of the board are the state’s Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, Mrs Chiamaka Nnake, Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Ifeatu Onejeme, Commissioner for Lands, Prof. Ofornze Amucheazi, and Commissioner for Transport, Mrs. Pat Igwebuike.