The Executive Chairman of Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), in the Nigerian Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Christopher Zakka Maikalangu, has inaugurated a task force for revenue monitoring, inspection and enforcement in the council.
Speaking at the inauguration at the council headquarters, Maikalangu said that the task force will work with mobile courts, lawyers and security agents to curtail the nefarious activities of fake and illegal revenue collectors in the council.
Maikalangu charged members of the task force to ensure there is no double taxation of residents and to also work within the ambits of the law.
He said: “I want to use this medium to address citizens of Abuja Municipal Area Council, especially taxpayers, over our new cashless revenue payment policy.
“May I quickly remind you that we are here to inaugurate the AMAC Task Force Enforcement on Revenue Monitoring, and Inspection. The team will assist us to rid the system of undue molestation, use of thugs as revenue collectors, reduce the activities of fake and unauthorized revenue collectors in addition to eradicate all forms of illegal financial transactions.
“You will all recall that at the inception of this administration last year, I dissolved all forms of revenue consultancy firms in the superior and overriding interest of good governance.
“In the same vein, we also announced several economic policies that will assist us to deepen good governance and enhance self-sustainability in the running of AMAC”.
Cashless revenue policy
Maikalangu said the introduction by the Council of a cashless revenue payment policy is a bid to stop the criminals whose business is to divert cash meant for AMAC into private accounts.
This he acknowledged led to the desire in sensitising the people to take responsibility of their civic duties in ensuring they pay all revenues to AMAC on time and without diversions.
According to him, the AMAC Taskforce on Revenue Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement is inaugurated alongside the Mobile Court, to perform the following functions:
i. General monitoring of revenue activities within the Council especially, the activities of revenue collectors/consultants;
ii. Investigate, discover and stop the activities of fake revenue collectors within the Council;
iii. Instill sanity in the revenue sector by identifying grey areas (if any), on the field with a view to mitigating uncovered anomalies;
iv. Fish out touts and miscreants who are often fakes in the field and hand them over for prosecution accordingly;
v. Identify incidences of double taxation and report back to my office for further necessary action;
vi. Where there are clear incidences of double taxation, advise appropriately, how such revenue heads can and should be harmonised;
vi. Above all, the task force is expected to identify tax evaders, arrest and prosecute offenders with a view to restoring sanity in the system by developing a database for effective resource and revenue mobilization for the sustainable development of AMAC.
Continuing, Maikalangu said that the members of the task force were carefully selected from the staff of the council, who have a good reputation.
He said the task force members have the moral task of ensuring residents are not molested as they’re expected to be corruption free, even as he charged them to live up to expectations.
Quick success
While appreciating the Chairman for the inauguration, Mr Yunusa Ahmadu Yusuf, the Task Force Chairman, revealed that the task force has been empowered and will record success within months.
He reiterated that any business person who pays money to fake revenue collectors on behalf of AMAC will pay double.
“We are not touts. We will work within the ambit of the law. I want to use this opportunity to warn that anyone who pays money to fake revenue agents in the name of AMAC will have to pay double.
“We are grateful to the Executive Chairman of AMAC for giving us all we require to work, including lawyers, mobile court and security agents. We won’t disappoint. We will deliver on our mandate. We will reward this faith reposed in us and will report back within three months,” he said.
Members of the Committee include:
1. Executive Chairman Abuja Municipal Area Council, AMAC, Hon. Christopher Zakka Maikalangu
2: Yunusa Ahmadu Yusuf: Task force Chairman
3. Kingsley Madak: Secretary
4. Chief Magistrate Habiba I.U Bello: AMAC Mobile Court Magistrate
5. Magistrate Bamisile Olumide Ayopo
6. Magistrate Abubakar Abdulkadir Jega
7. Magistrate Ngozi Clementina Okonkwo
8. Ndudi Ezekiel Chidi Esq. AMAC Task Force Legal Adviser
9. Danjuma John
10. Douglas Itiat
Emmanuel Ukoh
