By Stanley Onyekwere
The FCT Administration has stressed the need for stakeholders’ support for the newly introduced revenue harmonisation in the FCT, which will not only consolidate revenues from the area councils, but also all revenue generating agencies of the FCT Administration.
This point was made yesterday, at a one-day town hall on revenue harmonisation in Abuja, with the theme, “Harmonisation Drive: Shaping Our Future Together”, organised by the FCT Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS), to further harness stakeholders’ support for the initiative.
In his keynote address at the event, the Permanent Secretary FCTA, Mr. Olusade Adesola, stressed that the harmonization drive is not just a routine administrative exercise but an initiative with tremendous potential to impact on the revenue drive of the territory.
Adesola said: “By simplifying and consolidating our revenue collection systems, we aim to attract more investment, stimulate economic growth, and create employment opportunities. This will enhance the FCT’s reputation as an investment-friendly destination and contribute to the overall development of the region.
“Furthermore, the harmonization initiative will promote fairness and equity in revenue collection. By ensuring that all eligible individuals and businesses contribute their fair share, we can distribute the burden of taxation more equitably and reduce the tax evasion that hampers revenue generation.
“This will enable us to provide essential services, infrastructure, and social amenities that improve the quality of life for all residents of the FCT.”
Also speaking, the Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, Alhaji Muhammad Mani, commended the FCT-IRS for making technology a pivotal point of their operational policy.
Mani noted that the digital revolution was transforming tax administration globally, stressing the need for the revenue harmonisation drive to leverage on technology to achieve more results.
He added that the adoption of digital platforms in revenue collection in the FCT, holds the greatest prospects of streamlining operational cost, block revenue leakages and ensure accurate revenue data.
Earlier the Executive Chairman of the FCT-IRS, Haruna Abdullahi, said the FCT-IRS Act entrusts the Service with the duty to collaborate with relevant stakeholders and agencies in harmonizing and improving tax practices.
Abdullahi, while speaking on the legal frameworks that guides the revenue harmonization initiative, noted that section 46 of the Act outlines the functions of the FCT Joint Revenue Committee to include, “harmonize tax administration in the FCT, deal with revenue matters of common concern to the FCT and Area Council,” among other functions.
The Chairman therefore, urged the stakeholders to keep these legal provisions in mind, “as they serve not just as our guide, but also as our commitment to fairness, efficiency, and collaboration.”
