National Assembly empowers FCT to generate revenue

Finally, after15 years tussle, the National Assembly has empowered the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to independently generate revenue for the administration of the territory.
The feat was achieved on Wednesday when the Senate adopted the harmonised report of the Senate and the House of Representatives Committee on the FCT on a bill establishing the FCT Internal Revenue Service.

The Service has the powers to collect, assess and account for revenues accruable to the FCT.
The bill also provided for the establishment of FCT Internal Revenue Service and Management Board with the power to sue and be sued, control and administer different taxes within FCT and account for such taxes.
The bill, which was sponsored by Chairman, Senate FCT Committee, Senator Smart Adeyemi, provided that the board shall be headed by a chairman to be appointed by FCT minister subject to the approval of the National Assembly.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after the passage, Senator Adeyemi expressed gratitude to his colleagues and noted that the bill had been in the National Assembly since 1999, “facing obstacles and hurdles while political considerations made it difficult.”
Also, in the harmonised version, the Service, shall among others, collect, recover and pay to the designated account any tax or levy due to the FCT.
Just as the Federal Inland Revenue Service, the FCT Internal Revenue Service will also issue a tax payer identification number to every person taxable in FCT, collate and review all policies of FCTA that relate to taxation and revenue generation and simultaneously undertake a systematic and progressive implementation of such policies.