Nigeria’s Court of Appeal sitting in the nation’s capital, Abuja, has declined to grant the request of Rivers and Lagos State governments for the appointment of Receiver or Manager to collect Value Added Taxes, VAT instead of the Federal Inland Revenue Services, FIRS, pending the determination of all legal issues in the case.
Though the two states agreed that the order of status granted on September 10th in favour of the FIRS to continue the collection be put on hold in view of the appeal already logged at the Supreme Court against the order.
Counsel to Rivers State, Ifedayo Adedipe in his oral application pleaded with the appellate to exercise its power to appoint a Receiver or Manager to take custody of the VAT in the interest of justice to parties in the matter.
Attorney General of Lagos State, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo, also supported Rivers State in canvassing that the court be fair and just in pending appeal.
Mr Onigbanjo specifically asked the Appeal Court to restrain FIRS from further collecting the tax and replace it with a Receiver or Manager that would act for parties involved in the case.
The Lagos Attorney General predicated his expressed fear of unjust treatment on the fact that FIRS apart from collecting the tax has been sharing It among the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT despite the pendency of the legal tussle.
However, the Presiding Justice, Hamma Tsanami asked ”the two states to make their request formal by making it in writing.’
The Court has reserved ruling in an application by Lagos State to join as a respondent in the appeal filed by FIRS against a judgement granted in favour of Rivers State by a federal high court in Port Harcourt.
Mr. Onigbanjo who moved the application argued that Lagos has vested interest in the Value Added Tax collection and that the decision of the Court would affect It when delivered.
The Attorney General informed the 3-man panel of Justices that ”the FIRS in its appeal against the federal high judgment made some allegations against It and that it would be in the interest of justice for it to be allowed to join in the appeal to ventilate its defense.”
The appellate court, after listening to arguments from both parties, said that a date to rule on the issues would be communicated.
Mercy Chukwudiebere
