Date: 2016-11-04

The Joint Action Against Corruption in Kwara (JAACK) has described as hypocritical the sudden 'Conversion' of the Kwara State government into a tax collection - government when she had leveraged on tax free society to win elections in the past.

The group in a statement issued on Thursday in Ilorin by its Organising Secretary, Joe Mahmud said the new twist in the policy thrust of the government is the height of hypocrisy a government that rode on the wish of the people can exhibit.

It reads; "The government of Bukola Saraki in her twilight days and in the thick of campaign for votes to install his godson, Abdulfatah Ahmed labelled her opposition then, the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the candidate as 'Tax Collectors'. A super-imposed photograph cutting halves of of the head of the ACN candidate and the former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was imposed in a poster that was widely circulated as tax collectors.

" The government newspaper - The Herald placed it in its cover page in a number of editions. They maintained that if the ACN gained power they would impose taxes that would make life unbearable for the people, latching largely on their ignorance. What do we have today?

"That is why it will be difficult to believe this government for anything because her foundation is on deceit, falsehood and fallacy. It is just like the case of an hungry man who decides to join in dish washing at a food restaurant because of his lack of money. What does he do after he gets food to eat and the stomach is filled up?"

The statement further stated that;

"The Kwara Internal Revenue Service (KWIRS) saddled with responsibility of collecting taxes has not in any way helped the matter because of its ill preparedness for the job.

" What can you make of this statement by the Chairman of the KWIRS: anyone who stains the Shirt will have to wash it, but if the stain is indelible, then the person will have to go. We have new people doing the collection of taxes just as we derive revenue collection in the state with ICT", Dr. Murtala Awodun said.

According to the group, "that assertion is inconsistent with the operation of the revenue collection agency. For instance, just this week a young man was set to swindle an aged man in Ajase-po, Irepodun local government area where he posed as a staff of the KWIRS save for an intervention.

" It took the intervention of a friend to a child of the aged man where it was later discovered that the identification card on the swindler was fake with Benue State address. The swindler was later known to be a plank seller!

"The government should not because of her urge to generate fund ignore best practices. Collection of tax may not be a bad thing but what about the process employed? The enforcement strategies as enumerated by the agency are also unacceptable when it has done little to state what goes for what." It concluded.