Udom Transforms Akwa Ibom IGR Collection

. . . generates N19 billion in 9 months
 . . . pays salaries and entitlements to public servants promptly
. . . constructs over 1700km of roads
. . . upgrades health facilities across the State

Akwa Ibom State Governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel has recorded another milestone in the economic sector of the State as he has raised the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the State to an all-time high since the creation of the State, 31 years ago.

Just as the Governor has performed creditably well in all areas of his 5-point Agenda which have since put him in a pole-position to receive maximum votes of the people in 2019, he has again raised the bar in collecting N19 billion in just 9 months this year, the highest ever recorded by the State.

Disclosing this while presenting the 2019 Budget Proposals christened, “Budget of Industrialization for Poverty Alleviation”, to the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly last Wednesday in Uyo, Governor Emmanuel said the IGR for 2018 as at September this year stood at N19.043 billion.

This is more than the N15.95 billion that the State realized in the whole of 2017 by N3.09 billion, even with the figure for the last quarter of 2018 yet to be added.
Facts gathered from the Joint Tax Board show the yearly collected IGR in Akwa Ibom State as follows:-
(i) 2008 - N9.55   billion
(ii) 2009 - N11.80 billion
(iii) 2010 - N12.03 billion
(iv) 2011 - N12.38 billion
(v) 2012 - N14.87 billion
(vi) 2013 - N15.40 billion
(vii) 2014 - N15.58 billion
(viii) 2015 - N14.78 billion
(ix) 2016 - N14.97 billion
(x) 2017 - N15.95 billion
(xi) 2018(9 months) N19.04 billion

This superlative performance in the IGR growth for 2018 could be attributed to a number of factors, principal among which include:-
(a) The autonomy that Governor Emmanuel granted the new Board of Internal Revenue which he empanelled about 17 months ago has since removed all encumbrances from the bureaucracy of the civil service, as was the case hitherto.
(b) Inauguration of an Executive Board headed by a financial whizkid and a top flight tax/public finance expert.
(c) Blockage of all forms of financial leakages within the State IGR process.
(d) Introduction of automation and technology in IRS operations.
(e) Stoppage of all tax payments through physical cash handling as all tax collections are now done directly through designated banks and online.

A manager with Access Bank in Uyo, Polycarp Bassey who read through the 2019 Budget Proposal online gave kudos to the State Governor and the Board of the State’s Internal Revenue for a job well, stressing that the Board must have overworked itself to realize N19.04 billion in 9 months in a purely civil service State like Akwa Ibom State.
He however noted that with the avowed determination of Governor Emmanuel to industrialize the state, the state is bound to reap bountiful IGR in the next couple of years as more Akwa Ibom youths would not only be employed but others would be involved in other productive and taxable ventures.

Another Akwa Ibom indigene, Pastor Bassey Isin who also spoke with our reporter said the spectacular feat achieved by the Akwa Ibom Internal Revenue Service in raising the State’s IGR to an all-time high in the first 9 months of this year should be attributed to the vision of His Excellency in putting together square pegs in square holes to manage the internally generated revenue for the government.

He maintained that as a financial expert himself, Governor Emmanuel is well positioned to know the type of buttons to press for maximum results to be achieved.

Noting that the highest IGR since the creation of the state was collected in only 9 months in a recessed economy, Pastor Isin stated that even in the immediate past period of boom where there were high level of employment and steady increase in economic activities, the state could not match what she has realized in 9 months this year, commending the IRS for a job well done.

The significant growth in IGR started in 2017 with the inauguration of the new Board which has Mr Okon Okon as the Executive Chairman. The Board immediately commenced the implementation of new strategies which combined has given the agency the needed boost and push that turned around the fortunes of the agency to realize her highest revenue collection of N19.04 billion in only 9 months.

Value for the tax-payers’ money include; payment of salaries and entitlements to public servants on or before the 28th of every month.
Governor Udom has also paid all outstanding pensions, and gratuities to retired workers up to 2015, in addition to paying backlog of promotion arrears from 2012 to 2014 in which more than 10,352 public servants have benefitted.

He has also in the same vein recruited about 4,761 teachers into the education sector, spanning through primary and secondary school teachers as well as the Polytechnic and College of Education lecturers.

On health, the maxim that health is wealth has continued to engage the attention of His Excellency through the provision of the following services to Akwa Ibom people.
- Free medical services for children below 5 years, pregnant women and the aged.
- Over 25 containers of State-of-the-art medical equipment have been procured and are being delivered to health institutions in the State.
- Construction and upgrading of secondary healthcare facilities across the State.
- Reconstruction and equipping of General Hospital, Etinan, which was commissioned last year by Vice President, Yemi Osinbanjo.
- Reconstruction and the commissioning of Ituk Mbang General Hospital. Reconstruction of Ikono General Hospital, Emmanuel Hospital, Eket and the General Hospital at Iquita, Oron. On-going reconstruction work at Ikot Okoro General Hospital. Some of these hospitals are fully digitalized with advanced health information management systems among other many other achievements in other sectors of the State’s economy.