HADEIJA – The Hadejia Local Government in Jigawa says it has begun a community sensitisation to encourage the people to pay government levies.
The Sole Administrator of the council, Alhaji Ahmed Lawan, made the disclosure at one of such exercises on Friday in Hadejia.
According to Lawan, the sensitisation is organised in collaboration with the state government and the British Department for International Development (DFID).
He said the exercise was necessary because the government had initiated the “Demand Notice and Customer Teller Scheme” to enhance revenue administration and generation.
Lawan, represented by a director in the council, Alhaji Ahmed Abudullahi, said that under the new system, businesses would pay their revenue through banks and Point of Sale (POS) machines.
According to him, only petty traders will henceforth pay taxes through the old revenue collection system.
Lawan noted that the council would ensure the sensitisation was conducted in all the market places, motor parks and every other public place.
Muntari Wada, the Representative of DFID, said the organisation had initiated a ”Growth and Employment (GEMS-3) Programme” to support state and local governments to enhance their revenue generation.
Wada added that the programme would also focus on the transformation of land administration and encourage investment at the grassroots.
He called on community and religious leaders as well as non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to support the exercise. (NAN) —————————————————————————————————————
Kebbi Pilgrims Welfare Agency secures acommodation for 4,151 intending pilgrims (metro)
BIRNIN KEBBI – The Chairman of Kebbi State Pilgrims Welfare Agency, Alhaji Abdullahi Shema, on Friday said that the board had secured accommodation in Saudi Arabia for 4,151 pilgrims for the 2014 Pilgrimage.
Shema disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Birnin Kebbi.
The chairman, who did not disclose the number of houses, said 4,151 Pilgrims would be accommodated close to the Holy Kaaba.
He said that the accommodation and welfare committee headed by the Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Nuraddeen Kangiwa, assisted in securing the accommodation.
“We have secured accommodation close to the Holy Mosque to assist the pilgrims in observing religious rites during the 2014 hajj without hitches”.
Shema said that 20 per cent of pilgrims who could not perform the pilgrimage last year and had not collected the balance of their deposits would be considered before others this year.
He called on intending Pilgrims to be good ambassadors of the state and to exhibit a high level of discipline while in Saudi Arabia. (NAN)
