TAX COMPLIANCE: KWARA JUDICIARY, KW-IRS MEET ON REVENUE ENHANCEMENT FOR KWARA

In a bid to reinforce the nexus between taxation and the law and as part of efforts towards enhancement of revenue for Kwara State, the Kwara State Internal Revenue Service (KW-IRS) organized a one-day retreat for all Revenue Judges and Officers in the State, themed “Enhancing Revenue Compliance in Kwara State: An interactive session of Revenue Judges and Officers”, on 29th June, 2022 at the De Peace Hotel and Suites in Ilorin.

Giving her opening remarks at the occasion, the Executive Chairman, KW-IRS, Shade Omoniyi stated that the session was important to strengthen the relationship between KW-IRS and the Judiciary for effective tax administration in the State.

She charged revenue judges and officers present to effectively discharge their duties without fear or favour, so that the aim of establishing a Revenue Court in the State would not be defeated, adding that the task of revenue mobilization requires all hands to be on deck.

In a separate remarks, the Attorney General of Kwara State and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Senior Ibrahim Sulyman, who was represented by the Director, Public Prosecution, Jimoh .A. Munini (SAN) appreciated KW-IRS for the initiative, pledging that the judiciary would continue to carry out its responsibility on all tax matters.

The guest speaker at the event, the Director, Legal Department, Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), Seyi Alade Esq.,while presenting the lead paper on “Efficient and Effective Dispute Resolution for Improved Revenue Compliance: Case Study of Lagos State Internal Revenue Service”, stated that the role of the judiciary cannot be over emphasized in tax administration.

The Director legal (LIRS) charged judges in Kwara State to give revenue court matters preference over other cases, as matters of tax are usually time bound and need to be treated as such.  He further charged the judiciary to continue to be supportive in assisting Revenue Service of the State to achieve its revenue mobilization goal, to aid developmental objectives of the government.

Other paper presentations at the interactive session were delivered by Sunday Agbana and Taofiq Alabi, of KW-IRS, explaining the roles of different laws in revenue administration and punishments applicable as provided by the law for individuals or corporate bodies who fail to file their annual returns or pay required taxes.

In a panel discussion at the event, on the topic  “Strengthening stakeholders synergy on revenue compliance in Kwara State” by the Director, Legal and Compliance, KW-IRS, Shehu Abdullahi and the Attorney General of the State, emphases were made on the need for synergy in the revenue mobilization for the State, stating that there will always be room for improvement on support and alignment with the vision of the Executive Governor of the State towards more developmental projects for the State, which would only be realizable through adequate drive of tax compliance by all concerned stakeholders of the State.

Highlight of the session were presentation of commendation letters to two Revenue Officers of the Ministry of Justice, Barrister Bello Kafilat and Barrister Oyindamola Hammed by Management of KW-IRS for their remarkable service delivery in all revenue cases in the year 2021.

The session also fields questions and reactions from participants from KW-IRS, Ministry of Justice and the Kwara State Judiciary.

In her closing remarks, the Director, Accounts and Finance, Omolara Ojulari appreciated and admonished all participants to ensure adequate harnessing of resources for an improved internally generated revenue for the State, as it is not possible to fund all activities of government from the dwindling Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).

The interactive session had in attendance top management and staff of KW-IRS, the Chief Registrar of Kwara State High Court of Justice, Ibijoke O. Olawoyin, represented by the deputy registrar, Mohammed Ibrahim; Judges of Kwara State Revenue Court, Director, Revenue Department, Ministry of Justice, Idris Gana Jubril, and other Revenue Judges and Officers in Kwara State.

Signed
Corporate Affairs Depart, KW-IRS
30/06/2022