posted by Som Offor.
Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayo Fayose has
imposed series of new levies on corporate organisations and private
business concerns in the state in its bid to jack up the internally
generated revenue,IGR of the state.
Speaking at the weekend during his monthly media chat, ‘Meet Your
Governor’, which was aired live by the Broadcasting Service of Ekiti
State (BSES) and Radio Nigeria Progress 100.5 FM, the governor declared
that residents must be ready to make sacrifices to ensure the
development of the state.
He ordered that all private nursery, primary and secondary schools in the state to pay N150, 000 each to the state government before resumption by the middle of September.
Fayose emphasised that the payment of the levy is a precondition for any private school to operate in the state.
The governor also stated that any vehicle parked in unauthorised places would be impounded while the owner is expected to pay a sum of N10, 000 to retrieve such a vehicle.
Investigation revealed that a week before the governor’s pronouncement during the weekend, the order had been in force, with hundreds of vehicles towed and taken to the premises of Ekiti State Traffic Management Authority (EKSTMA).
During the media chat, Fayose also disclosed that a sum of N1,000 would be paid on every cow slaughtered in the state-owned abattoirs.
Also affected by the imposition of new levies are developers of new buildings throughout the state.
Though, the governor was silent on amount to be paid by private developers, he however warned that, “I will not tolerate a situation in which somebody building a house worth N15 million would find it difficult to pay N20,000 as tax. That will no longer be tolerated”,he said.
The governor also put hoteliers, beer sellers, artisans, sawmillers and other business owners on notice, while urging them to be prepared to make sacrifices for the development of the state.
He stressed that allocations due to the state from the Federation Account has reduced sharply, disclosing that the state got N2.6 billion for the month of July which could barely pay workers’ salaries.
In a swift reaction,the Ekiti State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has faulted the new regime of taxes and levies imposed on residents by the governor.
The party, which said the new taxes and levies would make life unbearable for the residents, added that imposition of higher taxes on Ekiti people was contrary to the electoral promises made to them by Fayose before the June 21, 2014 governorship election.
The governor, APC reminded, pledged to execute policies to make life easier for the electorate.
In a statement issued on Monday by the APC and signed by its spokesman, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the party said that the governor by his action, had shown that he was not a friend of the common man as he claimed to be.
The opposition party regretted that 10 months on, what Ekiti people saw was a reversal of fortunes under “an administration that has made deceit and lies as official policies of administration”.
He said Fayose had allegedly turned Ekiti people to puns in a political chess game, regretting that the people with prospects for success in their calling had been turned into “babies without reason”.
According to the statement,“What we have experienced in the hands of Governor Fayose is turning Ekiti people to babies without reason. He believes Ekiti people have no capacity for reasoning or that they have short memories and incapable of knowing their rights or that they can easily be incapacitated to insist on their rights.
“This we have seen in his reckless breaking of promises to the people in the last 10 months of his administration after running down his opponent’s life-lifting policies with the promise that Ekiti people’s lives would be better under his administration, if voted into power.
“Fayose promised market women freedom to ply their trade anywhere they wished, saying he would not bother them with taxes or chase them with the environmental task force.
“But today, Fayose is not only chasing them away from their trading points, he is also destroying their wares, including pepper and tomatoes, and imposing unbearable taxes that the traders cannot afford if they are to make any profit while market women are also being dislodged from their stalls and heavy fees imposed on them to acquire stalls in the new market he is planning to build.
“How much does a poor pepper and tomatoes seller makes that the governor is asking them to pay the magnitude of taxes he is imposing on them?
“As we speak, he is planning to force uniform to be supplied by the government on commercial motorcyclists at a fee while also planning to be collecting taxes from the okada operators, who he promised free reign during his campaigns, the same way he wants to be collecting tax on each cow slaughtered a day by butchers, who cry out over low daily sales.
“Unfortunately, it is the children of these same poor people that Fayose has imposed education levies and examination fees in both primary and secondary schools on the excuse that it is those that don’t pay for their education that fail in their examinations and we wonder whether Yoruba people that didn’t pay for their education during Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s free education days didn’t pass their examinations or whether beneficiaries of that free education are now failures in their communities”,the statement reads in part.
Olatunbosun, who described the governor’s action as “callous and reckless”, said breaking promises made to the electorate did not portray the governor as possessing the needed integrity to take Ekiti to greater heights.
The APC spokesman said rather than build on the policies of the immediate past administration aimed at giving economic empowerment to the people, Fayose not only cancelled them, but is now adding to their burden.
He regretted that the beneficiaries of the economic empowerment initiatives of the immediate past administration had been left in the lurch while those promised by Fayose during electioneering campaign had been fooled and made to wait for Manna that might not come.
Olatunbosun added: “Fayose, while vilifying Governor Kayode Fayemi for paying what he (Fayose) called a ‘pittance’ of N5,000 to Ekiti elderly people, promised during his campaigns to increase their monthly pay to N10,000 while also promising youths thousands of jobs and asked them to submit their application letters at his campaign office at his Spotless Hotel.
“Today, Fayose has cancelled the social security scheme for the elderly and the poor elderly people that cherished Fayemi’s gesture to ensure their sustenance now live on charity and some in hopelessness.
“The application letters he asked youths to write and submit at his campaign office are now common wrappers with groundnut sellers on the streets of Ado-Ekiti, thus creating double tragedy for Ekiti youths.
“For instance, the youth engaged in commercial agriculture production receiving sponsorship by Fayemi’s administration have been sent packing, same with thousands of youths in volunteer corps and hundreds of youths engaged in traffic management.
Governor Ayo Fayose
He ordered that all private nursery, primary and secondary schools in the state to pay N150, 000 each to the state government before resumption by the middle of September.
Fayose emphasised that the payment of the levy is a precondition for any private school to operate in the state.
The governor also stated that any vehicle parked in unauthorised places would be impounded while the owner is expected to pay a sum of N10, 000 to retrieve such a vehicle.
Investigation revealed that a week before the governor’s pronouncement during the weekend, the order had been in force, with hundreds of vehicles towed and taken to the premises of Ekiti State Traffic Management Authority (EKSTMA).
During the media chat, Fayose also disclosed that a sum of N1,000 would be paid on every cow slaughtered in the state-owned abattoirs.
Also affected by the imposition of new levies are developers of new buildings throughout the state.
Though, the governor was silent on amount to be paid by private developers, he however warned that, “I will not tolerate a situation in which somebody building a house worth N15 million would find it difficult to pay N20,000 as tax. That will no longer be tolerated”,he said.
The governor also put hoteliers, beer sellers, artisans, sawmillers and other business owners on notice, while urging them to be prepared to make sacrifices for the development of the state.
He stressed that allocations due to the state from the Federation Account has reduced sharply, disclosing that the state got N2.6 billion for the month of July which could barely pay workers’ salaries.
In a swift reaction,the Ekiti State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has faulted the new regime of taxes and levies imposed on residents by the governor.
The party, which said the new taxes and levies would make life unbearable for the residents, added that imposition of higher taxes on Ekiti people was contrary to the electoral promises made to them by Fayose before the June 21, 2014 governorship election.
The governor, APC reminded, pledged to execute policies to make life easier for the electorate.
In a statement issued on Monday by the APC and signed by its spokesman, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the party said that the governor by his action, had shown that he was not a friend of the common man as he claimed to be.
The opposition party regretted that 10 months on, what Ekiti people saw was a reversal of fortunes under “an administration that has made deceit and lies as official policies of administration”.
He said Fayose had allegedly turned Ekiti people to puns in a political chess game, regretting that the people with prospects for success in their calling had been turned into “babies without reason”.
According to the statement,“What we have experienced in the hands of Governor Fayose is turning Ekiti people to babies without reason. He believes Ekiti people have no capacity for reasoning or that they have short memories and incapable of knowing their rights or that they can easily be incapacitated to insist on their rights.
“This we have seen in his reckless breaking of promises to the people in the last 10 months of his administration after running down his opponent’s life-lifting policies with the promise that Ekiti people’s lives would be better under his administration, if voted into power.
“Fayose promised market women freedom to ply their trade anywhere they wished, saying he would not bother them with taxes or chase them with the environmental task force.
“But today, Fayose is not only chasing them away from their trading points, he is also destroying their wares, including pepper and tomatoes, and imposing unbearable taxes that the traders cannot afford if they are to make any profit while market women are also being dislodged from their stalls and heavy fees imposed on them to acquire stalls in the new market he is planning to build.
“How much does a poor pepper and tomatoes seller makes that the governor is asking them to pay the magnitude of taxes he is imposing on them?
“As we speak, he is planning to force uniform to be supplied by the government on commercial motorcyclists at a fee while also planning to be collecting taxes from the okada operators, who he promised free reign during his campaigns, the same way he wants to be collecting tax on each cow slaughtered a day by butchers, who cry out over low daily sales.
“Unfortunately, it is the children of these same poor people that Fayose has imposed education levies and examination fees in both primary and secondary schools on the excuse that it is those that don’t pay for their education that fail in their examinations and we wonder whether Yoruba people that didn’t pay for their education during Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s free education days didn’t pass their examinations or whether beneficiaries of that free education are now failures in their communities”,the statement reads in part.
Olatunbosun, who described the governor’s action as “callous and reckless”, said breaking promises made to the electorate did not portray the governor as possessing the needed integrity to take Ekiti to greater heights.
The APC spokesman said rather than build on the policies of the immediate past administration aimed at giving economic empowerment to the people, Fayose not only cancelled them, but is now adding to their burden.
He regretted that the beneficiaries of the economic empowerment initiatives of the immediate past administration had been left in the lurch while those promised by Fayose during electioneering campaign had been fooled and made to wait for Manna that might not come.
Olatunbosun added: “Fayose, while vilifying Governor Kayode Fayemi for paying what he (Fayose) called a ‘pittance’ of N5,000 to Ekiti elderly people, promised during his campaigns to increase their monthly pay to N10,000 while also promising youths thousands of jobs and asked them to submit their application letters at his campaign office at his Spotless Hotel.
“Today, Fayose has cancelled the social security scheme for the elderly and the poor elderly people that cherished Fayemi’s gesture to ensure their sustenance now live on charity and some in hopelessness.
“The application letters he asked youths to write and submit at his campaign office are now common wrappers with groundnut sellers on the streets of Ado-Ekiti, thus creating double tragedy for Ekiti youths.
“For instance, the youth engaged in commercial agriculture production receiving sponsorship by Fayemi’s administration have been sent packing, same with thousands of youths in volunteer corps and hundreds of youths engaged in traffic management.
“Youth entrepreneurial and apprenticeship scheme by Fayemi that
could make youths employers of labour has also been cancelled by Fayose
and in their place, he introduced stomach infrastructure that gives a
measure of rice and three-month-old fowls to Ekiti people every
Christmas.”
Meanwhile, Governor Fayose had harshly criticised president Muhammadu Buhari, claiming that his policy threatens the unity of the country.
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