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The Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS) has clarified that the ongoing graft case against the agency by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) predated the appointment of its current executive chairman,Muhammad Nami.
The agency’s Director, Communications and Liaison Department,Dr.Abdullahi Ismaila Ahmad, gave indication in a statement made available to Premium News on Wednesday
His clarification came on the heels of the Abuja Federal High Court’s commencement of the hearing of a case of fraud involving some ex-directors and some members of staff of the Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIRS).
The members of staff are answering charges concerning embezzlement of the Duty Tour Allowances (DTA) approved by the erstwhile management. They were arraigned on a 42-count charge bordering on corruption, fraud, and criminal misappropriation of funds punishable under the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended in 2012).
The ongoing trial of the staff of the Service followed a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) about the alleged fraudulent practices which the accused allegedly committed between 2017 and 2018. At the latest hearing of the matter on Wednesday, June 23, 2021, the court fixed the trial date for the case on September 28, 2021.
The agency’s spokesman recalled that the alleged violation being tried in the court took place between January 2017 and December 2018 and concerns Duty Tour Allowances (DTA) approved by the former management for travels that were allegedly not undertaken.
He explained that on the assumption of office by the new management, the Board of the Service promptly directed it to take the matter before the Staff and Management Disciplinary Committee for necessary disciplinary processes to be activated to deal with the situation.
He added the Human Capital Management Department of the FIRS subsequently investigated the matter and issued queries to the concerned members of staff to give the serving officers a fair hearing.
According to him:’’The Service had since completed the internal administrative processes as provided in its Human Resources Policies handbook as it relates to the officers still in service. The outcome of this procedure has been kept in abeyance pending the outcome of the ongoing court process. The Management of FIRS wishes to appeal to esteemed taxpayers and stakeholders to continue to have confidence in its capacity to deal with internal issues while not also lose sight of its mandate of generating tax revenue for the government.
……Endorses Naira Tax Returns On Interswitch Network
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has partnered Interswitch Group to enable taxpayers to file naira-denominated tax returns through its government-approved payment gateway.
The Interswitch payment gateway has been deployed on FIRS’s new Tax Administration Solution (TaxPro-Max) e-filling platform.
Taxpayers and tax consultants are expected to file their tax return on FIRS TaxProMax, click on Interswitch logo to generate the Document Identification Number (DIN) and make payment using Interswitch Paydirect at any bank branch nationwide or pay online via Quickteller Mobile App/Web.
Besides,the registration on TaxProMax is mandatory as taxpayers that are yet to get their user credentials are to register online or visit the nearest FIRS tax office to be onboarded.
Interswitch Group’s Divisional Chief Executive Officer for Industry Ecosystem Platforms, Chinyere Don-Okhuofu, said the company is committed to supporting the FIRS to deepen effective tax collection, which is critical to national economic prosperity through its robust digital payment platform.
She said: “In furtherance of our commitment to support the Federal Government in driving efficient and accountable revenue collection across all touchpoints, we are delighted to consolidate our existing partnership with the Federal Inland Revenue Service in delivering seamless payment collections and reporting to complement the improved TaxProMax platform. The continued partnership between Interswitch and the FIRS, which dates back as far as 2005 when Interswitch pioneered electronic tax collections for the Federal Government is an attestation of our commitment to delivering robust and efficient payment solutions and a confirmation of the agency’s trust in our solutions.
“FIRS has modernized its tax administration and collection processes. We believe that the ease accompanied by the new platform will enhance tax compliance. In addition, leveraging proven payment solutions such as Interswitch’s makes the platform consistent with global standards. We, therefore, encouraged taxpayers to pay all their Naira-dominated tax returns through the Interswitch portal.”
Don-Okhuofu emphasized the need to strengthen the digital payment landscape through innovative payment solutions such as TaxPro-Max to drive the needed transformation in the economy.
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