Stakeholders in Edo State, including commissioners, senior civil servants, and members of the judiciary, have lamented the continued loss of revenue through tax evasion.

It was revealed that many people working in Edo State pay their taxes to the Delta State government.

The Edo State Inland Revenue Service has adopted a Treasury Single Account to reduce leakages in tax collection.

The Managing Director of the Edo State Traffic Management Agency, Engr Stainless Ijeghede, stated that he had made reports on the payment of taxes of oil company workers in Edo State to Delta State, but the Edo State government had yet to take action. “When I go there to work at the end of the month, I still see in my pay slip, tax Delta, all my years there, I didn’t see tax Edo, what that means is that those people who work in Oben pay tax to Delta State Government.”

The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Edo State, Hon Samson Osagie, agreed with Ijeghede, saying many Deltans had settled in Edo State and claimed ownership of certain places, leading to revenue losses for the state.

He mentioned that several meetings on boundary issues had been held and adjustments made, and the National Boundary Commission was expected to visit the areas and ratify the boundaries to stop revenue loss. Osagie also proposed a Revenue Court Law to create specific courts to try tax offenders.

“We are proposing a draft using our neighboring Delta State as a model to have revenue courts law of Edo State so that all tax offenders will be sent to those courts and make trials fast and easy,” Osagie said.

The EIRS Executive Chairman, Otunba Oladele Bankole-Balogun, emphasized the need for stakeholders to work together to increase the state’s revenue base, stating that a fundamental tool for achieving this is the single Treasury Account.