CALABAR, NIGERIA — A wave of anxiety and economic frustration is sweeping through the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector in Cross River State, as local entrepreneurs accuse government revenue agents of systematic extortion through multiple and redundant taxation.
Loading ...The boiling crisis came to a head when an aggrieved small business owner released a public appeal directly to Governor Bassey Otu, brandishing eight different official tax receipts accumulated in just the first half of the year [DZw59t8NXdQ]. The entrepreneur warned that the current aggressive drive for revenues is actively killing grassroots businesses and suffocating the local economy.
“Governor of Cross River, your people want to kill small entrepreneurs with tax,” the business owner lamented in a widely circulated video [DZw59t8NXdQ]. “Since this year, I have paid eight different taxes. Here are the receipts.” [DZw59t8NXdQ]
A Broken Business Ecosystem
The public outcry mirrors deep-seated complaints from various corporate and trading associations within the state. The Calabar Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (KACCIMA) has repeatedly cautioned that businesses are being forced to pay identical, overlapping levies demanded by competing ministries, departments, agencies (MDAs), and local government tax consultants.
The consequences of this harsh fiscal climate are already manifesting. The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) recently raised an alarm that several manufacturing plants have closed down, while others have successfully relocated their operations to neighboring Akwa Ibom State to escape the relentless harassment and high operational costs [businessday.ng/news/article/cross-river-moves-against-extortion-multiple-taxations/].
The outrage is not limited to brick-and-mortar storefronts. Commercial transporters and inter-city drivers recently paralyzed parts of Calabar with protests, blocking major roads to demonstrate against excessive daily ticket fees and illegal extortion at multiple highway checkpoints.
Aggressive Revenue Targets Meets Policy Overhaul
The Cross River State Internal Revenue Service (CRIRS), led by Executive Chairman Prince Edwin Okon, has defended the state’s rigorous collections, pointing to an ambitious internal goal to boost Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) to ₦60 billion under the newly enacted Cross River State Tax Reform Act [premiumtimesng.com].
However, acknowledging the severe public backlash and the damage being done to small businesses, Governor Bassey Otu’s administration has announced an emergency package of interventions aimed at restoring sanity:
- Suspension of Transport Levies: Governor Otu approved an immediate suspension of ticket sales and related charges on inter-city transport operators to ease the burden on commercial drivers [news.crossriverstate.gov.ng/gov-otu-suspends-ticket-sales-levies-on-inter-city-transport-operators/].
- Strict Ban on Cash Collections: In a bid to flush out fake tax collectors and predatory touts, the CRIRS has completely outlawed cash payments, ordering that all legitimate taxes be paid through automated digital platforms [premiumtimesng.com].
- The Tax Harmonisation Bill: A legislative framework is moving through the State House of Assembly to centralize all state and local council revenues into a single unified billing system, aiming to eliminate the multi-receipt dilemma for good.
The Implementation Gap
Despite these official regulatory promises, business owners on the ground complain of a massive gap between government policy and field enforcement. Many claim that aggressive field agents continue to bypass the automated rules, deploying strong-arm tactics and sealing up shops to extort cash from vulnerable traders.
Economic analysts warn that unless the Otu-led administration firmly reins in these rogue agents and rapidly rolls out its harmonized single-tax window, the state risks a massive flight of capital and widespread closures in the very sector that drives the state’s employment.
