The sign of what awaits some staff and the numerous consultants of Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), especially those employed by the immediate past chairman, Mr. Tunde Fowler, in the New Year, came to the fore recently when the new chairman, Mohammed Nami, said that Fowler employed more staff, yet revenue collection declined, thus reechoing the main subject of the query slammed on Fowler months ago by the Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, months before he Fowler was denied a second term opportunity by Buhari.
According to him “revenue collection dwindled despite the engagement of consultants by Babatunde Folwer… “
In a yuletide letter to staff, Nami encouraged them to work towards achieving the revenue collection rate of 2012 when the staff exceeded revenue target by N1.3 billion.
During Fowler’s tenure, he engaged the services of tax consultants to be able to meet revenue targets.
In a yuletide letter to staff, Nami encouraged them to work towards achieving the revenue collection rate of 2012 when the staff exceeded revenue target by N1.3 billion.
During his tenure as FIRS chairman, Fowler had engaged the services of tax consultants to be able to meet revenue targets.
Nami encouraged staff to reverse the “obvious downward trend” in the new year.
“Let me use this occasion to remind you that as a result of your uncommon commitment to duty, in 2012 especially, you were able to raise Five trillion, seven billion naira (N5.007 trillion), even without active participation of consultants, and with moderate inflation and exchange rate.
“I want to be positive that this impressive performance is achieveable again.
“It is observed that despite the rise in service workforce, the engagement of consultants, the rise in inflation and the exchange rate, the tax revenue collection continues to dwindle.
“I therefore urge you all to take advantage of the current staff-friendly environment now in place to redouble your efforts to reverse the obvious downward trend and to ensure that the current target is not only achieved but doubled before the end of 2020.”
Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, had said Fowler’s tenure was not renewed because the government has to improve revenue generation.
However, rather than encourage the workers to put in more effort, the letter has sent fears into their spines, especially those that were employed when Fowler came in.
Hear one on of them who is a senior staff that came in through Fowler: ” I am lying low for now…. I don;t know what this our new Chairman is up to especially for those of us they call Fowler’s people.
” His letter has sent fears to us….,”our sour sour said.
The workers are not alone; even some of the consultants are also living in fear’
And going by the words of one of them, “I will not be surprise if he comes with his men… that is the way we do things here in Nigeria. Only a foolish man will think that nothing will happen. my is for him to respect contractual agreement and allow consultants agreement with the service to run its due course. To me, anything can happen but whn I do not know.”
