By Simon Akoje
A tax expert has urged the Federal Government to update its tax laws, and embrace more technology to ensure an efficient tax system.He said this in an interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Wednesday.The President, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITAN), Mr Adesina Adebayo, said the regulators should be ingenious and utilise more of science in capturing the data of companies expected to pay their taxes.’Many companies are operating and making money without a known conventional office address,” Adebayo said.“Enforcement of punitive measures for erring companies would have been one of the ways of bringing sanity to the country’s tax systems
.“However, the inadequacies and the bottlenecks inherent in our judicial systems is undermining the process.“There are too many delays in the process of serving justice to individuals and firms, who violated our tax laws,” he said.He noted that there should be a continuous and coordinated approach in educating the people on having an effective tax system in the country.Also, another tax expert, who preferred anonymity, said the Federal Government should review its tax laws so as to have an efficient systems. “Gazetting the laws will strengthen tax laws and address all the inadequacies, being experienced currently,” he said.He noted that there should be serious synergy among the tiers of government, so as to have an efficient tax administration in the country. “There should be collaboration among national and sub national units of government because they are closest to the people.“Working together is imperative to achieve national goals and reduce acrimony among each other,” he said.
NAN reports that President Muhammadu Buhari described Nigeria’s current tax system as fragmented and inefficient, urging a harmonised one within a single system to boost revenue generation.According to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, President Buhari spoke at the 2nd National Tax Dialogue.(NAN)
