Edo heads for court over hospitality bill

do State Government on Tuesday said it hadfiled a counter-motion against hospitality business operators in the state who failed to register with the Board of Internal Revenue.The business operators approached the court shortly after the state passed into law a bill making it mandatory for them to pay charges. Chairman of the state revenue board, Oseni Elama, said the consumption tax law made it mandatory for the operators to register with the BIR.At the event to reward compliant owners of hotels, restaurants, event centres and eateries in the state, Elama said those yet to comply had contravened the law "which states that they must register with the state government 30 days from the day the law was signed."He said, "The House of Assembly has made this law. Even when they dont agree, a law has been made. Government has a responsibility not only just to make law but to demonstrate that they have the capacity to enforce the laws they have made. "They have gone to court but that has not stopped us from enforcing the law until something else happens, we believe it is in the greatest interest of Edo people. For us, we believe in the rule of law, so if there are people not complying we go with the provisions of the law and take them to court."The law says it is mandatory that every owner of hotels, restaurant, eateries, event centres to register with the board within 30 days from the effective date of the law and that law was signed on June 24 and today is November 1. So if there is any business place that is not registered with the board, that business operation already falls foul of the law."Elama said the ceremony to reward those that had complied with the law was also a way of encouraging those yet to comply to do so.The Secretary to the State Government, who is also the Chairman of the state Taskforce on IGR, Dr. Simon Imuekheme, said through the IGR, the state had raised its monthly revenue profile from a N250m to N1.6bn.
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