The Chairman of the Kogi State Internal Revenue Service (KGIRS), Alhaji Sule Salihu Enehe, has called on the State’s Local Government Chairmen and key stakeholders to collaborate on implementing the Land Charge Law, 2024, aimed at enhancing the state’s revenue generation.
Enehe made this call on Tuesday during a stakeholders’ engagement on the implementation of the Land Use Charge Law, 2024, held at the KGIRS office in Lokoja.
Explaining the significance of the law, Enehe said the law harmonizes all revenue accruals into one cohesive framework to enhance revenue generation for all the local government councils in Kogi state.
He added that the law (Land Use Charge), which can also be referred to as property tax when fully implemented, can foster data-driven decisions and pave the way for the development of smart cities and job creation in the state.
Speaking further, Enehe said, in line with the ongoing tax reforms, the law aims at streamlining revenue collection, promoting transparency and ensuring that all stakeholders contribute their fair share towards the development of Kogi state.
“I firmly believe that the successful implementation of this law will yield enormous benefits for our local government councils and for our dear state at large.”
“KGIRS has been collecting tenement rate on behalf of the local government, but the collection of ground rent has not been enforced.”
“The process of implementing the Land User Charge commenced last year, and we need to acquaint ourselves with the process so that when enumerators enter the local government, the Chairmen should give them all the necessary support to enable them to succeed,” he added.
The Chairman urged the council’s Chairmen to join forces with KGIRS in making a resounding success through the implementation of the law, noting that the stakeholders can unlock the vast potentials abound in the state and create a brighter future for the citizens.
Giving the overview of the law and it’s numerous gains to the state, the Chief Executive Officer of New Wave Echo System Mr Femi Williams revealed that the Land Use Charge is a known law covering landed property, saying some states have been using the law in the last fifteen years to boost their revenue generation.
Listing individuals exempted from land use charge in Kogi state, Mr Williams mentioned
government-owned properties used for public purposes, places of worship, educational institutions, healthcare facilities, properties owned by traditional rulers used for official purposes, and properties below a certain size threshold as defined by the state’s Land Use Charge Law.
In their separate remarks, the Chairman of Olamaboro local government, Hon. Cosmos Atabo and that of Lokoja, Hon. Abdullahi Adamu, assured that the Chairmen of the 21 local government areas of the state would give their support to ensure that the implementation of the law succeeds at the grassroots.
