FG to Recruit 7,500 Graduates as Tax Liaison Officers to Boost Revenue

In a bid to increase enrolment into the tax net and boost revenue generation, the federal government is set to recruit no fewer than 7,500 graduates as outreaches in communities across the country in order to raise awareness on the tax system

This is a deliberate move by government to recruit more people into the tax net with the overall aim of boosting revenue generation.

The planned recruitment of 7,500 community tax liaison officers would be tied to the government’s N-Power programme.

The Minister of Finance, Mr. Kemi Adeosun, who revealed this in Abuja yesterday alongside the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Mr. Babatunde Fowlers, said when recruited, the graduates would be trained and deployed in communities with a view to raising tax awareness among the populace.

The recruits, who would be trained and deployed in communities, are expected to go to schools, churches, mosques, and markets, among others, to enlighten people on the tax system and as well as their obligations.

“We will be recruiting them through N-Power and they can apply through the website of the Federal Ministry of Finance or through the N-Power website.

“It’s a two-year fixed contract and they will be deployed to states, attached to state Internal Revenue Service or FIRS. Their job is to improve the level of education on Nigeria’s tax system.

“Our tax system is progressive, meaning those who earn less should pay less and those who earn more should pay more. A lot of people don’t know that. So it is a chance to get people on ground to answer all these pertinent questions.

“This exercise is extremely important for the fiscal sustainability of states because as you know, most of the revenue for states, apart from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) is supposed to come from tax.

“So if we improved the number of taxpayers, we will be improving the fiscal health of our state governments as well as the federal government. It is an important initiative for the nation as we undertake reforms to reduce our over dependence on oil.

“We have to make sure that everyone who is economically active pays tax, no matter how little, they have to contribute to the pool,” she said.

The minister noted that out of an estimated 69 million taxpayers either working for themselves or fully involved in one economic activity or the other, only 14 million were registered.