The Nation Newspaper

Tag: collectors

  • Obaseki assures of support structures for Art, Culture sector

    …lauds ‘Journey of An African Monarch’ exhibitor

     

    The Governor of Edo State, Mr Godwin Obaseki, has assured artists, curators, collectors and art enthusiasts of his administration’s support for the art and culture sector through a mix of market-oriented policies, promotion of Edo arts and crafts in the international market as well as the construction of a new museum in the state for the kingdom’s prized artworks.

    Obaseki said this at a photo exhibition in Benin City, with the theme: “Journey of An African Monarch,” organised by Mr. Omoregie Osakpolor.

    According to the governor, “Edo State has continued to produce some of the finest artists in the industry and I urge our youths to take advantage of the enabling environment we are creating for them to express themselves.”

    The organiser said the exhibition showcased a photography series reenacting the great Benin kingdom’s coronation rites of the 40th Oba, Oba Ewuare Ogidigan II.

    “The series which tells the two-week coronation story of the Omo n’Oba n’Edo, Oba Ewuare II’s ascension to the throne of the King of the ancient Benin kingdom, goes beyond just a collection of pictures, but also the reenactment of the Benin traditional rites of the coronation of the Oba and rich cultural heritage of the Edo people.”

    He expressed his gratitude to the governor for identifying with the exhibition, and noted that the governor’s endorsement of the event will raise its profile.

    Osakpolor explained that “the exhibition having witnessed a huge success in Lagos and Abuja, will be running in Benin at Ben Osawe Art Centre, till June 3.

    He expressed his thanks to God for the success of the exhibition, which he said is “his first exhibition amongst other projects he has achieved in recent times.

    Osakpolor is a documentary photographer and 2017 nominee for the Edwin George Prize for Photography at The Future Africa Awards.

  • Council chief goes after illegal revenue collectors

    Chairman of Agege Local Government Area of Lagos State, Hon Ganiyu Kola Egunjobi has warned unauthorised persons to desist from collecting revenue from residents and traders in the council area.

    He warned that anyone caught in this act would be prosecuted.

    Egunjobi issued the warning during an interactive session with traders and residents of Aluminium village, Dopemu, and its environs.

    He condemned the habit by the leaders of some trade associations of non-remittance of revenue unlawfully collected from their members over the years.

    He said: “The interaction enables me to address issues bordering on security, sanitation and internally generated revenue. And from what I have gathered from traders, they have been paying revenue due to the Agege local government area to their trade associations. Unfortunately, the leadership of the associations have not remitted such money to the coffers of the council area.

    “Millions of naira had been paid by shop owners to their associations, but we are not seeing any money being paid to our council area, so where has the money gone to? So there is unlawful collection of our revenue by people not appointed to carry out such duty and we are certainly not going to take that anymore.

    “We have engaged the leadership of the affected associations with a view to making them see reason why they should remit the money collected as local government revenue from their members to our council’s purse. We are inviting the associations to a meeting following which we shall take punitive actions errant ones among them.

    He added that his administration would ensure safety of lives and property.

    “We have been holding regular security meetings with all law enforcement agencies and community leaders within the council area and there has been relative peace. We have also been engaging vulnerable youths in order to discourage them from indulging in criminal activities as well as empowering them with vocational skills for economic self-reliance that would discourage them from criminal activities.”

  • Oyo goes tough on illegal sticker, toll collectors

    Oyo goes tough on illegal sticker, toll collectors

    The Oyo State Signage and Advertising Agency (OYSAA) has warned private individuals producing fake mobile advert stickers and selling them to end users at ridiculous prices to desist from such practice or face the music.

    Its Director-General, Pastor Yinka Adepoju also warned local government officials and their agents to stop blocking roads and forcing branded vehicle owners to procure their locally-made mobile stickers.

    This, he said, is contrary to the extant laws establishing the agency.

    The agency issued the warning yesterday while unveiling the 2018 mobile advert stickers and certificates at the Film Theatre, Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Agodi Secretariat, Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

    According to him, the mobile advert stickers were for branded vehicles for private individuals, corporate organisations, religious organisations, non-governmental agencies, among others.

    He gave the rate at N3,000 for cars, buses, motorcycles, tricycles and N5,000 for lorries, trailers and other articulated vehicles.

    Adepoju said the launching was in line with practices globally to generate revenue for government.

    He said the agency would not allow any individual import fake stickers.

    Any private or corporate organisation caught with such, he said, would be dealt with.

    He said: “We will ensure all leakages in revenue generation is blocked.  We will not relent in our effort at stopping indiscriminate posting of posters and erection of billboards in the state because we aware of some private individuals who are in the habit of producing fake Oyo State Mobile Advert Stickers and selling them to end users at ridiculous prices. Such individuals or corporate organisations should desist from such activities as anyone caught indulging in such act will not be sparred but immediately handed over to the law enforcement agents for prosecution.”

  • Ogun loses N5b monthly haulage revenue to collectors, says Amosun

    Ogun loses N5b monthly haulage revenue to collectors, says Amosun

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has said the state government loses between N3 billion and N5 billion monthly to haulage revenue collectors.

    The governor said the fraud was perpetrated through cheating, extortion, use of fake receipts and failure to remit the money collected to government coffers.

    He regretted that the loss was hurting the government and limiting its capacity to serve the people effectively.

    Amosun spoke yesterday in Abeokuta, the state capital, while addressing stakeholders during the kick-off ceremony of the “Harmonisation of Haulage Revenue Collection in Ogun State”.

    The governor noted that there were 63 approved toll points across the state, yet not much was coming in because of “leakages, illegal toll collection and extortion of money from payers without remitting (same) to the government”.

    He added: “This particular scheme is an improvement on the Haulage Revenue Collection Scheme. It is aimed at correcting the hitherto haphazard scheme, which allowed unscrupulous individuals to extort money from payers without remitting same to the government coffers.

    “No wonder our haulage drivers have been groaning under multiple collection that they have been subjected to. It is important to note that haulage collection should ordinarily come under the purview of the civil service structure.

    “But we decided to contract the collection to our people. Our aim was to create more openings through which we could empower more people. But I must confess that our intervention was grossly misconstrued and largely abused by majority of the participants.

    “We found out that a large chunk of generated revenue was not remitted to government and some of the operators have gone beyond the brief of the delegated authority.

    “As government, we cannot allow such abuse, which has led to major revenue loss and extortion of our people. It is for the reason that a technical committee was set up to look into how haulage revenue could be collected in a profitable manner to government and operators while also maintaining decorum and sanity.

    “Even within government circle, people were printing fake receipts. We lose between N3 billion and N5 billion monthly because some people are stealing the money. The era of people doing what they liked is over.”

    Amosun said to curb the inadequacies and block leakages his administration came up with the harmonisation of haulage revenue collection.

    The governor said the new scheme would also prevent “multiplicity” in the collection of such revenue.

    He added that the new strategy would also bring in more revenue from the revenue stream, create avenue for easy monitoring exercise and assess performance of revenue consultants as well as allows flexibility in payment.

    Also, Finance Commissioner Adewale Oshinowo said prior to the new initiative, collection of haulage revenue was haphazard and led to the loss of huge revenue to the state.

    The commissioner said a technical committee, comprising officials of the ministries of Finance, Commerce and Industry, Agriculture, Forestry and Environment, was set up to resolve hiccups in collecting the revenue and stop irregularities.

    He said: “The development will further block revenue leakages, if not eradicate it, and curb illegal toll collection, as the new tickets are tamper-proof.

    “Our strategies and basis for the product also include provision of signposts at toll points, provision of portal cabins at the toll points, to accommodate the revenue agents, provision of identification cards and we have also ensured adequate sensitisation of stakeholders and the public through print and electronic media.”

     

  • Tax collectors ‘kill’ suya seller in Edo

    A barbecue (suya) seller, Musa Ali, has been allegedly killed by some youths who collect night taxes from barbecue sellers, night food vendors and tea sellers.

    Musa was said to have been stabbed after demanding money from the tax collectors, who bought suya from him.

    His death made his colleagues march on the secretariat of Oredo Local Government Area demanding the abolition of night taxes.

    One of the protesters, Usman Umaru, said: “We are made to pay N200 each night and that most time this is collected with violence and harassment.

    “On the night Ali was killed, they came and he gave them money. They came back and bought suya but did not pay.

    “When Musa asked them for money, one of the boys stabbed him and they used a stone to hit his head. They collected the money on him and ran away.”

    Chairman of suya sellers Shehu Abdullahi said it was only in Oredo that night taxes were introduced.

    He said they paid taxes at the point of purchase and could not pay another tax at the point of sales.

    “Giving tickets at night as tax is not good. The chairman should cancel night tax. Why should they tax suya sellers after collecting tax where we buy the meat?”