ODIRS moves to ease tax payment, launches consolidated demand notice

By Segun Giwa

The Ondo State Internal Revenue Service (ODIRS) on Tuesday launched the Consolidated Demand Notice (CDN) to ease payment of tax to the state government.

Mr Tolu Adegbie, Executive Chairman, ODIRS, during the launching of CDN in Akure, said it would ease the way business was being done, as business owners would be able to plan the payment of their taxes within a calendar year.

According to Adegbie, CDN is a notice that consolidates different taxes being paid by business owners and corporate organisation, such as annual rate, levy, fee and permit into a single assessment.

He said that it would reduce to the barest minimum, multiplicity of revenue collectors visiting such business premises.

“We believe this is something that will aid businesses. An hotel will know what (amount) to pay by the end of the year and how they plan to pay within the year, we make it convenient for all these government revenue generating agencies.

“They don’t have to visit them at all the time. The agency will come, you will show them the receipt. You can even pay online,” he said.

The Commissioner for Finance, Mr Wale Akinterinwa, while speaking with newsmen on the sidelines of the event, said apart from making tax payment easy, CDN provides information on the rates of different taxes in the ODIRS website.

Akinterinwa explained that it would reduce confusion, as it had been consolidated into one, and could be paid in installments.

“Somebody brings one notice today, another brings another one and different people come to pursue you and ask for taxes from you.

“Now, you have one notice that encapsulate all the taxes you will pay. You can now go online and see the amount to be paid and it is giving knowledge at finger tips,” he said.

Also, Babajide Akeredolu, Director-General, Ondo State Performance and Project Monitoring Implementation Unit (PPIMU), said that ODIRS was setting the pace on how government should be run.

Akeredolu said the website launched for the CDN had enough data that contained all the information needed for visitors.

Similarly, Mr Olurotimi Obadeye, a representative of one of the banks, said that apart from the ease of payment of tax, CDN would also improve the revenue generation for the state.