In a statement made available to reporters in Benin City on Tuesday, Secretary to the State Government Musa Umar Ikhilor announced that the Edo State Government has banned the direct collection of cash revenue.
Ikhilor stated that security agents have been placed on alert and that anyone or any group of people who violates the order will be subject to the full force of the law.
He also stated that the state government only recognized agents licensed by the Edo State Internal Revenue Service (EIRS) in order to protect the public from extortion and to prevent revenue collection procedures from being compromised.
Ikhilor added that the state government resolved that the system of revenue collection shall solely be predicated on the existing template developed by the EIRS in conjunction with the Local Government Councils and the various associations in the state.
“The Edo State Government wishes to recall the earlier ban on unlicensed agents and touts from revenue collection across the state.
“The direction, which only recognized Edo State Internal Revenue Service (EIRS) licensed agents, was to ensure the protection of the citizenry from any form of extortion as well as safeguard state revenue collection processes from any leakage.
“Following from the foregoing and for purposes of emphasis, Edo State Government has fully resolved that the system of revenue collection in the state shall solely be predicated on the existing template developed by the Edo State Internal Revenue Service (EIRS) in conjunction with the Local Government Councils and the various associations in the state.
“On the strength of the above, the state government has sternly placed a serious ban on direct cash collection in respect of revenue collection in the state.
“Security agents have been put on alert and any person or group who decides to flout this directive would be held accountable,” he stated.
