A coalition of 180 Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, has explained how the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, voted about 340 million maira for refreshments in it’s 2021 budget estimates, dismissing speculations that the service had proposed 1.4 billion naira for the said budgetary sub-head.
Addressing Journalists at the Federal Capital Territory, President of the Civil Society Groups for Good Governance (CSGGG), Comrade Dominic Ogakwu said it had relied on the Freedom of Information, FOI, Law to request relevant documents from the FIRS before addressing the allegation.
However, they said it should be noted that budget provision being an estimate of income and a plan for domestic expenditure by an organisation, does not translate to actual expenditure, because the amount to be actually spent would still depend on the actual fund released and received by the Service, on the basis of performance and delivery.
clarifying the misconceptions surrounding the alleged proposed 2021 draft budget for FIRS refreshments in 2021 does not reflect what was finally submitted to the National Assembly for approval.
There have been accusations on the tax collecting agency of insensitivity and misplacement of priority.
