By Dorathy Aninge
Benue Commissioner for Finance, Mr Michael Oglegba, has said that the state is targeting N3 billion monthly as Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) in 2025.
Oglegba, who stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Makurdi, said that the state IGR has shored up since Gov. Hyacinth Alia assumed office.
The commissioner said that he discovered, on assumption of duty in the ministry, that the revenue being generated was between ₦600 million and ₦700 million monthly.
He, however, said that in the last one year, the ministry was able to increase the revenue generation to about N2 billion per month.
“We have a very ambitious plan, which is to still grow the revenue to more than N3 billion per month.
“Doing so will enable us to pay salaries and pensions comfortably from the IGR, but this would require a lot of work from us.
“The revenue has grown not because new tax types were introduced; we simply blocked loopholes, thereby creating more money for the state, which is why we have been able to pay salaries consistently.
“I was excited the day the state internally generated revenue was able to pay salaries of core civil servants in the state, which is the main objective of every manager of the economy.
“The target this year is to pay the new minimum wage with IGR and pay not only core civil servants but pensioners as well,” he said.
Oglegba stated that even though they were trying not to put so much pressure on people because of the hardship that the subsidy removal has created, those that have been evading tax would be made to pay through every legitimate means.
The commissioner said that the state needs the revenue to pay salaries of civil servants and also meet other needs of the citizens.
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