2019 General Elections: Umahi suspends collection of personal income tax in Ebonyi

Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi state, yesterday ordered the immediate suspension of the collection of Personal Income Tax and other illegal revenues from markets in the state.

He also ordered the suspension of every revenue collection in the local government areas in the state till further notice. Umahi took the decision at the Town Hall meeting which held at the Pa Oruta Ngele Stadium Abakaliki.

 The governor gave the directive following complaints from market women in the state, through their leader, Mrs Akoji Agnes, of illegal revenue collections by some fraudsters and illegal revenue collectors in the State. He also directed that no levy or tax should be collected from women selling vegetables and other perishables in the open market. “All these women who don’t have shops and who are selling vegetables, nobody should collect any tax or levy from them again.”

According to him, those who have stalls or shops in any market in the state should pay only the consolidated revenue agreed by the state government with leaders of various markets in the state. He regretted that fraudsters have capitalized on the ignorance of the people on the harmonised consolidated revenue to defraud traders and landlords in the state.

 He directed the Deputy Governor, Kelechi Igwe to set up a committee on revenue to hold a meeting with market women, traders, council chairmen, traditional rulers and other stakeholders to come up with acceptable revenues they are to pay on certain period of time.