FG Sets Up Revenue Quality Assurance C’ttee for Telecoms

The federal government, through the Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS) and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has considered as necessary, a joint revenue quality assurance committee for the telecoms sector.

The committee, which was recently set up by the NCC and the FIRS, has the mandate to improve the level of efficiency in tax management and revenue generation through deployment of technology.

The setting up of the committee was the outcome of the discussions between the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta and the Chairman of FIRS, Mr. Babatunde Fowler after a courtesy visit of Fowler to the NCC headquarters in Abuja recently.

Specifically, the joint committee with four members each from the two federal government organisations is to examine and suggest ways through which the level of transparency can be attained through technology in tax management for FIRS and the returns from Annual Operating Levy (AOL) for the NCC.

The committee will also see how staff matters including payments are addressed. It will also audit the states and proffer what benefits are accruable to them in terms of taxes collected.

It is expected to work out a recommendation to facilitate the Type Approval of telecommunications equipment that can be used for a transparent assessment of the operators revenues.

Danbatta told the FIRS boss that the NCC had expressed serious concerns over the shutting down of Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) in the states indiscriminately without recourse to the Commission.

“This is worrisome as it undermines the capacity to provide telecom services, thereby denying consumers quality of services,” Danbatta said.

He also cited the resolution of the National Economic Council on Multiple Taxation, Levies and Charges on ICT Infrastructure in Nigeria dated March 21, 2013 saying the document is very clear on the issues of multiple taxations, levies, right of ways (RoWs) among others.

Danbatta pleaded with the FIRS chairman to help propagate the provisions of the policy to the Joint Tax Board (JTB).

The FIRS boss had earlier narrated his worries over the taxes being collected from mobile network operators (MNOs) across states.

Fowler said his concerns stemmed from the fact that MNOs do not remit the Value Added Tax ( VAT) already charged as at when due, “while some decide when they will remit it but the law stipulates that such taxes must be remitted to the FIRS between 20/21 of each month. Some too have not fulfilled the annual returns”, he added.

In an earlier working document sent to the Commission, the FIRS had requested the permission of NCC to connect its equipment to the MNOs networks for a direct interface, to which Danbatta responded that such equipment must go through the Type Approval process.

Danbatta however said the NCC saw the collaboration with the FIRS as a decision in the right direction.

This underscores what President Muhammadu Buhari said recently about the collaboration of intergovernmental agencies which saw to the timely completion of the runway of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, ahead of the time schedule for completion.