Lafia – The Nasarawa State Government says it will introduce development levy, surface rent, hotel/restaurant tax to boost Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
Mr Usman Okposhi, Chairman of Nasarawa State Board of Internal Revenue, told newsmen on Wednesday in Lafia that a bill had been sent to the State House of Assembly to facilitate the process.
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He said any organisation operating within the state should be ready to pay development levy to the government once the bill is passed into law.
“We as the tax authorities of the state have to look inward and find ways of improving the state IGR base through the enactment of a law compelling everybody to pay development levy on a monthly basis to the government, ” Okposhi said.
He maintained that Nasarawa State, ‘Home of Solid Minerals’ should benefit from the minerals deposits through the payment of surface rent by explorers.
“By the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, mineral resources is in the exclusive list, but the law says we can go as far as taping our revenue from
surface rent from these minerals every year,” Okposhi said.
He lamented that what comes from federal allocation was a `handout,’ as the government has committed itself to a very huge monthly wage bill. (NAN)