By Bida Elly David
The new commissioner general of the National Revenue Authority (NRA) has set a benchmark and promised to generate SSP 40 billion monthly, from non-oil revenues into the Country’s coffers.
Mr. Athian Ding Athian, who was on Tuesday received at the general headquarters by his staff, showed readiness to assume his official duties.
Addressing the occasion, Diing promised to empower the domestic tax division to identify more taxpayers, through access to key databases in both the private and public sectors.
“Data will be sourced from major private players, including public contractors and hospitality service providers, as well as major hotels, to ensure that they pay their first share of taxes,” he said.
Diing added that a comprehensive analysis of tax exemption will be carried to beef out illegal institutions that claim to have been exempted from tax clearance.
He said that generating financial resources to pocket the government’s treasury remains his inevitable mission that can’t be turned down in every circumstance.
The new NRA boss underscored that the review exercise will enable the Revenue Authority to grant legal institutions rights of tax exemption if need be.
“We shall review all exemptions to ensure that statutory institutions are granted tax exemptions and all other illegal exemptions are nullified,” Commissioner Diing echoed.
He further said NRA would work with key institutions to strengthen compliance and enforcement systems, including the establishment of dry ports to ensure clearance and checking of vehicles at entry points.
“The dry ports shall be put in checkpoints to ensure that incoming vehicles from all points of entry, including checkpoints, are checked, re-checked, cleared, and to avoid tax evasion,” he noted.
Mr. Diing, more so, pledged to expand Nimule dry port as well as introducing technology aimed at removing inconveniences for arriving passengers and trucks.
“NRA shall work with partners to enact its electronic system integration, bringing efficiency and security to the tax collection mechanism,” he said.
The NRA Commissioner said that the electronic system will be built to use technology as a key driver in improving the administration of tax collection.
“All the internal payment systems shall be digitalized by the NRA to eliminate loopholes in the procurement and payment processes,’’ he reiterated.
He called on the employees of the authority, the government, and partners to jointly work with him towards mending the Country’s economy through non-oil revenues.
Commissioner Diing vowed to create a conducive working environment for his employees to mitigate internal hitches.