By Adia Jildo
The National Minister of Finance and Planning, Agak Acuil Lual has urged institutions tasked with revenue collection to relevantly collect taxes to ensure timely payment of arrears as well as service delivery in the country.
Minister Agak made the appeal during the opening of the NRA offices in Konyo-Konyo and Munuki citing complaints on malpractices and misuse of public fund, affecting service delivery which includes payment of civil servants’ salary arrears.
“You are collecting the taxes, know that you are collecting it to remit it to the center such that we can deliver services to the people,” Agak stated.
He cited swindling, heavy taxation and illegal tax collection as reasons for inflations.
“You are part of the problem or at times we are all part of the problem. There are issues of malpractices, misuse of public funds but if we do the right thing we shall move this country to the next level,” he pointed. “If you don’t bring the money, the arrears I am trying to pay will start accumulating again if you bring the money then I will pay the arrears,” the Minister added.
He said the effort of tax collection should be to enable service delivery and it’s subsidized to be used for developmental projects
“If you don’t work well, if you are in the frontline and you are defeated by the tax payers or you collaborate with them, and divide the money among yourselves then you are devils because you are not serving the country,” Agak echoed
The Finance Minister emphasized that good management of resources can give a positive outcome to the country.
“You collect it right, bring it, I will distribute it right but if you don’t I will have nothing to deliver to the people,” he cited.
He urged the officers working at revenue collecting institutions not to compromise with the issue of taxes.
Minister Agak stressed that excess taxes are the reasons to inflation as traders may tend to increase prices to cover up the burden caused due to taxation.
“We need to harmonize taxes. We need a meeting between the national revenue authorities, City council such that they look at those taxes so that the burden on the civilian is lowered,” he called.
“The more we collect taxes, the security takes, City Council takes and the traders will add the taxes on the goods,” he underlined.