‘Lagos IGR now N23bn per month’, as 626 tax defaulters prosecuted

The Lagos State Government says about 4.5 million residents are now paying their taxes, thus increasing its average monthly Internally Generated Revenue from N20bn

in 2013 to N23bn in the first quarter of this year.

The Special Adviser, taxation and Revenue, Mr. Bola Shodipo, and the Chairman, Lagos State Internal Revenue Service, Mr. Tunde Fowler, during a ministerial press conference to mark the fourth year second term in office of Governor Babatunde Fashola in Alausa, Ikeja, said voluntary taxpayers increased from 3.8 million in 2013 to 4.5 million as of first quarter of 2015.

Explaining the figure, Fowler said, “The high months of collection are usually in April, May and June. These are the months when companies declare dividends and members of staff go on leave and they get their leave allowance.

“In terms of our actual collection, we didn’t increase in IGR. In 2013 we had approximately N236bn, while in 2014 it was N276bn. So we went from an average of N20bn in 2013 to an average of N23bn. That is one of the things that have kept the state working.

“The informal sector has yet to pay tax. Some of the people in this sector get paid for their services. They are about three million people in the state. The objective of taxation is to distribute wealth.”

The LIRS boss stated that 626 tax defaulters were prosecuted with a total liability of N11.6bn, while 376 succeeded in obtaining a restraining order, translating to a liability of N8.1bn.

Fowler added that N728m had, however, been recovered through court processes.

Shodipo said the growth in the number of tax payers showed that the residents trusted the government to deliver on its promise.

He said, “As Lagosians, we are embedded w:””ith the ‘can do spirit.’ That is why we particularly acknowledge the prompt payment of your taxes and levies; this has in no small way been the propellant for this administration to fulfill its electoral promises.”