From Emmanuel Adeyemi Lokoja
The Kogi State Internal Revenue Service says it acted on a court order in the closure of Globacom Nigeria Limited and Airtel Network Limited operating in the State due to their alleged refusal to pay their taxes
Addressing newsmen in his office on Wednesday evening the acting Executive Chairman, of the Revenue Service ,Alh. Sule Salihu Enche said Globalcom refused to pay its tax obligations to the state since 2017 to date which amounted to over ₦300 million while Airtel is also in tax default to the tune of over ₦60 million
Rather than paying the outstanding tax , the Revenue boss alleged that the affected telecom providers resorted to propaganda and misinformation which he said will only compound their issue with the state.
The KGIRS said it was not in disputes with the Association of Telecom Providers but with the Telecom companies individually for their refusal to pay their taxes and stressed that the telecom association should not be brought into the matter.
The KGIRS says as an organization that has tremendous respect for the rule of law, it will not take any action that Infringe on the rights of individuals and/ or corporate organizations as it is committed to complimenting the efforts of Kogi State government at making the State the investment haven
The KGIRS said it has ensured due process in the closure of Globacom and Airtel offices in the state and called on the corporate organizations to reciprocate the open door policy and the conducive environment provided by the adminstration of Gov. Yahaya Bello by paying their taxes duly.
The Revenue Service wondered why the two telecom organizations refused to pay their taxes to the Kogi government while it was not so in other states of the federation where they operate.
