JTB to audit ministries, agencies

The Joint Tax Board (JTB) will carry out a detailed audit of both federal and state MDAs for the last six years to reconcile unremitted taxes and appropriate action taken towards settlement.

The audit, according to the board, will enable the federal and state governments generate more revenue to execute projects for the citizenry.

This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the 141st meeting of the board with the theme ‘Leveraging on ICT for Efficient Tax Administration and Revenue Enhancement: Focusing on State IRS’, held in Enugu recently.

The communiqué, which was signed by the board chairman, Tunde Fowler and secretary, Oseni Elamah, resolved that all State Boards of Internal Revenue (SBIR) required political will and support to carry out their functions effectively and assist state IRS meet the revenue targets for their states.

It also stated that all services and transactions that required the presentation of Tax Clearance Certificate (TCC) should be enforced in line with the constitution and extant tax laws while state governments are encouraged to grant boards of internal revenue administrative and financial autonomy for enhanced revenue collection.

The board therefore noted that tax authorities should automate their tax administration system in line with global best practices to enable them take advantage of newly consolidated national taxpayers data base for effective exchange of information.