In an effort to dramatically increase the state’s internally generated revenue, the Lagos State Government has unveiled a new strategic agenda for taxation and revenue collection (IGR).
The announcement was made yesterday during a media roundtable in Lagos by Abdul-Kabir Ogungbo, Special Adviser on Taxation and Revenue to the Governor of Lagos State.
He revealed that the new is anticipated to improve revenue collections and tax compliance as well.
According to Ogungbo, the state’s revenue sector should see growth, compliance, and efficiency as a result of the overall strategic objective.
He claimed that the state’s residents and businesses would benefit from even simpler revenue collection and payment procedures with the introduction of the Automated Revenue collection (ARR) system.
According to Ogungbo, the Lagos Revenue Platform (LRP) will be revamped and made available to users on August 7 with a number of new features and an enhanced user interface.
He also discussed the current property owners’ amnesty program, which provides a unique chance for them to pay off past-due property taxes.
He urged locals to use the LRP platform to make payments in order to benefit from this scheme.
The speaker also discussed the e-GIS enterprise solutions being implemented by Lagos State, the land administration portal, and the activation exercise for land use charge payers, among other initiatives.
He further stated that the plan was in line with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s T.H.E.M.E.S+ strategy, which is based on four pillars: effective policy frameworks, the power of technological systems, tactical enforcement, and inclusive advocacy.
“The plan would optimize revenue processes and operations through automation across all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in the state, harmonise sector-based revenue operations and collections to promote seamless compliance by businesses and residents and implement sections of laws focused on driving compliance, such as PITA Section 85,” he said.
Ogungbo claims that the plan would also assist in creating and executing revenue opportunities in the property, informal, and digital economies to seize new market opportunities; working with federal agencies to find corporate entities remitting money for PAYE and other state-related taxes; and setting up a Lagos State Revenue Court to hear cases pertaining to revenue.
By deploying the Lagos Revenue Portal (LRP) for non-tax collections and e-TAX for tax collections, it will assist the state government in achieving a 99 percent centralization of revenue management. Additionally, it will support the deployment of the Lagos State artificial intelligent chatbot system, which will facilitate seamless service delivery for both the formal and informal sectors.
Along with streamlining revenue collections, he said, the state will benefit from working with local governments to advance public awareness of compliance standards through a variety of platforms, such as town hall meetings, seminars, TV appearances, jingles, newspaper publications, social media, and more.
The introduction and use of Revenue Automation Platforms is the main priority.
“We are committed to making it easier for our residents and businesses to comply with tax obligations. Our goal is to create a one-stop-shop for all LASG revenue collection needs, and we believe the ARR system will achieve just that. The LASG is also launching an ongoing amnesty program for property owners, offering a special opportunity to settle outstanding property taxes. Residents are encouraged to take advantage of this program by making payments through the LRP platform,” he said.
