The Chairman, Anti-Tax Agency, Bishop Emmah Gospel Isong addressing journalist in his office with members of his agency
PATRICK ABANG, Calabar-
Chairman of Cross River State Anti-Tax Agency, Emmah Gospel Isong on Thursday said his team has been able to reduced drastically the issue of illegal levies in the state by thirty percent in the last one year.
The chairman accused Local Government Chairman and top politicians in the state of collecting what he called multiple taxation from the very poor in the society.
Isong who is also a Bishop and General Overseer of Christian Central Chapel International (CCCI) lamented that illegal levies collected by these politicians has been counter productive.
According to him, “the State that was attracting people from other states as a tourism destination had been abandoned” due to illegal taxation.
Isong further said “due to recent observations and information on the continuous operations of certain recalcitrant Tax Consultants purportedly representing Local Goverment Councils or MDAs of Government, it has become mandatory for the Cross River State Anti-Tax Agency in collaboration with Enforcement Services to issue a warning and alert unsuspecting public that the popular Tax – exemption policy of Senator Ben Ayade is still in force and remains unabated despite political and mischievous manipulations”
Addressing journalist in his office in Calabar, the Chairman of Anti Tax Agency, said “despite the activities of anti people policy who continued to extort the very people they were voted to serve the agency wish to restate that Governor Ben Ayade tax exemption policy has not been abated”
He said the tax exemption policy is a people’s friendly policy of governor Ben Ayade Administration, nothing that the agency have collaborated with the Board of Internal Revenue and security agencies in the State to fight the neferous activities of those he called political thuggs.