CITN urges support for VAIDS initiative on tax evasion, others
• Plans workshop for editors
The Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) has called for increased sensitisation to tackle the huge financial leakages in the country.
The CITN’s President and Chairman of Council, Cyril Ede, made the call yesterday when he led a team of the institute on a courtesy visit to The Guardian.
Ede said the visit was due to the newspaper’s commitment to the country’s development over the years. According to him, the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS), is the only solution to the poor response to taxation and illegal financial flows in the country.
He appealed for compliance to the scheme to deepen the initiative and generate more revenue for the government. Also, the institute said it would leverage on The Guardian’s strength and reputation to reach out to Nigerians, particularly on the proceedings of its yearly tax conference.
The event, which he described as the largest tax gathering in the sub-region, has also placed the institute on the front row in tax administration in the country.
He promised to sponsor a workshop on tax matters for editors to raise awareness and deepen knowledge on the implications of tax to the economy.
Ede, in the company of the former President of the institute, Prof. Olateju Somorin, stressed that VAIDS would be instrumental to the government’s global initiative of tackling these leakages, which have contributed to the country’s underdevelopment.
“This visit is part of our institute’s engagement with stakeholders in the country to build an enduring partnership and also offer our views on tax issues as they affect the environment in which our organisations operate.
“Our aims and objectives are to promote professional ethics and efficiency in tax administration practice and encourage, promote and coordinate research for the advancement of standard practice and administration in the country, which the VAIDS scheme would help to achieve,” she said.
Somorin explained that VAIDS’s extension of grace period from July 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018, might be a new initiative in the country, as it has been in use with a different name, the Voluntary Disclosure Programme (VDP).
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