By Lateef Adegbite
This is not the best of times for the over 6000 companies incorporated by the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC, operation in Lagos, the nation’s Commercial centre. The Companies which are scattered in the different sectors of the state economy ranging from the Automotive, Construction, Financial services, Hospitality Food and beverages, packaging, Communication to shopping, are jittery as officials of the Lagos state Internal revenue service, LIRS, enforce the state tax Laws to fish out those who had failed to remit their Organisations Personal Income Taxes of employees and remittance of consumption taxes.
Many believe that what Babajide Sawo- Olu, the current Lagos state governor is doing was not different from what the previous Administrations had done to boost the state internally generated revenue by going after the CAC incorporated companies operating in the state including Hoteliers, restaurant operators and events facility owners.
Olayemi Michael Cardaso, a- one time Commissioner of Economic Planning and Budget and now governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, underBola Ahmed Tinubu, the first democratically elected state governor of the state was said to have , to have written and monitored the implementation of the blueprint which was said to have catalysed the economic development of the state including leading to the state’s development of independent tax revenues. Past and present governors of the south west most populous state was said to have followed religiously the Cardaso economic blueprint for the state which was said to have boosted the each Administration’s IGR.
Given the adoption and implementation of the Cardaso economic blue print which had inputs of Edun, the then state Commissioner of Finance ,may have informed why past and present Administrations ostensibly to force the Companies , Hoteliers, restaurant operators and events owners , including individuals remit the Personal Income taxes of their employees and consumption taxes to the state government coffers.
As part of efforts to boost the state IGR, the LIRS, which had taken the bold initiative to enforce the state tax Laws was said to have closed down 34 Companies for failing ‘’to remit Personal Income Taxes of their employees and non-remittance of consumption tax for alleged purchase of goods and service.
A statement by Monsurat Amasa-Oyelude, Head, of the gency Corporate Communications, LIRS, shows that NTS Nig. Ltd, Medi-In Hospital &Pharma Services Ltd, Avaya Nig. Ltd, Danvic Petroleum International Ltd, Business Intelligence Technology, Avaya Nig. Ltd, GladstoneTech Ltd, Courier Plus Services Ltd, Kurioucity Ltd, Medilag Ventures Oilfields and seven Six and Ten Limited, had been closed down and could only be reopened after defraying outstanding tax payments.
The LIRS, statement further shows that during the same operations by the LIRS, that led to the closure of the 24 companies and 23 hotels, restaurants and event facilities in the state, officials had discovered that the affected Companies, Hoteliers, Restaurants and event facility owners ‘’ deduct taxes from their employees and collect consumption taxes for goods and services sold to customers but fail to remit same to the state government coffers as expected.
LIRS , Management , had listed Blitz Suites & Hotel, Offshoroomz otel, God’s Grace Hotel, De Orange Place Ltd, De Santos Hotel, Kentade Hotel Ltd, Chamcee, Chelsea Suites, Falode Hotels, High Climax Hotel , Chez Moi Apartment and Excellence Hotel as some of the tax defaulting Hotels, restaurants and events centre..
This si in addition to Bereans Venture( Tatalizer , Ebute Metta), LaAvril Hotel &Suites, Milaco Guest House, New World Inn, Model Hotels Ltd, Rely Maritime Ltd, 4 Seasons Hotel, Dream Land Hotel, 343 North Restaurant and Lounge and Jade Palace Chinese Restaurant.
In closing down the affected 24, CAC , incorporated Companies, and 23 Hotels, Restaurants and event centres in the state, Seyi Alade, the LIRS, Director, Legal services, had reported that their tax liabilities to the state government was more than N356 million , noting that their s had caused the state loss of huge revenue over the years.
It was not surprising why the Lagos state agency had no option but to apply the full weight of the Law as contained in the state’s development blueprint written by Cardaso. He had told those that cares to listen that LIRS, Management has opted to implement the Law to the later as a way ‘’ to secure compliance with the remittance of consumption and Personal Income Tax es of employees, to the Lagos state government to facilitate the execution of projects intended for the well of residents of the south western state.
The LIRS, legal Director, had alluded o the fact that ‘’ some Companies, Hotels, Restaurants and events facility owners deduct Personal Income Taxes from their employees’ salaries at the end of each month and charge consumption taxes on goods and service purchased by customers but chose’’ to withhold these payments , illegally converting the funds for their own use’’.
The LIRS, Management appears to have sent a signal to the Companies, Hotel and Restaurant operators including events facility owners in the state that the enforcement exercise which had led the closure of many of some the business outfits in the state in the recent time shall be a continuous exercise, stressing that appropriate punishment shall be visited on all defaulters, urging them to endeavour to comply with extant tax Laws operational in the state. Informed sources told The Value News that that sone high -net-worth individuals and companies that had failed to file their tax returns , are currently being prosecuted in various Courts in the state
Enough of the LIRS. We turn to Wale Edun and Cardaso, who are currently holding key positions in President Tinubu’s Administration performance at the national level, particular, raising the value of the naira which had remained very low since May 29, 202023 and now.
The dual who had worked closely together as Commissioners in Lagos state under Tinubu, as the state governor, may have gone back to the drawing board to repeat what they had done to boost the Lagos state IGR, to strengthen naira which had witnessed a free fall to the North American Country of the United States, US, dollar, United Kingdom, UK, Pound sterling and the European euro at the official and parallel , popular, black market foreign exchange markets over the last five months.
Given the backing of Edun, the minister of Finance who has the ears of the Nigerian President, Cardaso, the apex bank governor had hinted last September the regulatory bank had put the necessary structures in place to settle the over $7 billion owed to the bank Creditors.
The CBN governor may have based his confidence on repaying the overdue Forex debts as the country is expecting to receive $10 billion from the World Bank to ease liquidity in he forex market between now and December 2023.
Cardaso, the CBN, governor, who has been working round the clock to block all loopholes that had been continuously exploited by economic saboteurs to weaken the naira over the years had confirmed that that the apex bank had commenced the payment of the outstanding matured forex forwards owed to Citibank, Stanbic IBTC, Standard Chartered Bank, .
Cardaso and his Management Team, may have taken the bold initiative to boost the value of the naira in the Forex market after plunging to the all time low of N1,310.00/$1 at the parallel market on Wednesday, November 1, 2023 after it commenced clearing a$7 billion backlog of matured foreign currency forward transactions that was said to have weighed on the local currency over the years
This is evident as the N950.00 to the US ,naira was said to have appreciated at the official and parallel Foreign exchange markets On Friday, November 3, 2023. The naira was said to have at N950.00 to the US.one US dollar on Friday, November 3, 2023 as against the N1,024.00 traded against the dollar on Thursday, November 2, 2023. On Saturday, November 4, 2023, the black market exchange rate of the naira to the US dollar was said to be N1,140.00 to the US one dollar for buying and sold at N1 45.00 to the dollar .
Note that the official exchange rate that was said to have been provided by the Cardaso led CBN, was N783.67 to the US dollar. Some of the Key factors that was said to have contributed to the fluctuations in the black market forex rate include : demand supply, economic conditions, both locally and globally , the country’s inflation rate. Balace of trade and foreign reserves.
Othe factors that were said to have had a direct impact on the black market rates include government policies like currency controls and restrictions to manage the naira’s value, political stability and internal stocks such as changes in oil prices .
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