The management of Benue State Internal Revenue Service, BIRS, has sealed up the administrative offices of Jos Electricity Distribution Company, JEDC, in Makurdi and Dangote Cement Company, DCC, Gboko local government area of the state.
Executive Chairman of BIRS, Mrs Mimi Adzape-Orubibi, who led her team to enforce the exercise said the action was taken as a result of their refusal to pay up their taxes after due assessment by BIRS.
The Chairman, in pursuant to a court order granted by Justice T. A Igoche of the Benue State High Court, said it became necessary after the two organizations failed to comply with their tax obligations on PAYE/Withholding tax and levies amounting to 433,104,395.00 and 218,523,186.90 for JEDC and DCC respectively.
After locking up JEDC offices in Makurdi and Gboko, the Chairman said the service had sent demand notice to the company and followed up with reminders as contained in sections 57 and 58 of Personal Income Tax Act (PITA), 2011 as amended.
She said “after BIRS met with JEDC and reconciled the figures we gave them 30 days to pay and they did not pay. So we followed up with reminders of 14 and 7 days which they still did not pay, we thereafter approached the court with all our documented evidence and got the warrant to distrain by sealing up the premises of the company until the tax liabilities are defrayed”.
On DCC, Mrs. Orubibi said the company failed to object to the assessment on it within the 30 days stipulated time by law, thereby making the assessment final and conclusive.
The media assistant the chairman, Mr. Suswam Jacob, said the premises sealed during the exercise included the JEDC head office on Otukpo road, the area office at Kwararafa quarters, in Makurdi, JEDC head office on J.S Tarka way, Gboko and the Dangote Cement Company, Gboko.
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Reacting to the incident, the Management of Jos Electricity Distribution Plc has pleaded with BIRS to unseal all the premises sealed as they continue discussion on the way to resolve the indebtedness of each other, in the overall interest of the Benue State and their company.
In a statement made available to journalists in Makurdi, the Head, Corporate Communications, JEDC, Mr. Adakole Elijah lamented that the sealing has affected their command and control centres and other critical operational offices.
“The command and control centre manages the switching operations, distribution activities and load allocation, to serve our esteemed customers safely as well as avoid grid system collapse. The offices where work tools and spare parts are warehoused were equally sealed up, making it difficult to carry out some activities aimed at maintaining the power supply.
According to him, allowing their equipment on supply, unmanned shall constitute a great risk with potential accidents to the general public.
“We’ve commenced the creation of temporary command & control centres to enable restoration of service where possible for now. We, therefore, plead with all our esteemed and valued customers to bear with us as the process goes on to restore service to all.”