By Peter Duru

We’re maintaining dignified silence—Institution

MAKURDI—Benue State Internal Revenue Service, BIRS, has sealed up the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, FUAM, over unremitted N2.3 billion Personal Income Tax, PIT.

Among the offices sealed by BIRS were those of the principal officers of the institution, including that of the Vice Chancellor, the Registrar and the Bursar.

Speaking on the exercise, leader of the special operation and Executive Chairman of BIRS, Mrs. Mimi Adzape-Orubibi, said the board was compelled to take the action after the institution violated Section 104 of the Personal Income Tax Law, 2011, as amended and other relevant tax laws.

Tax(VAT)

She explained further that “the management of the institution also failed to honour several letters written to it to pay up the outstanding PIT, which dates back to between 2007 and 2011.

“Hence we got an interim order to picket the institution because it failed to deduct PAYE tax in some cases or deducted less in other cases and the implication is that the institution would now have to pay almost N3 billion, including penalties and interest.”

Reacting to the development, Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, FUAM chapter, Bemgba Anjembe, said a lot of money had over time been deducted as tax from salaries of staff of the institution and wondered why the institution was still in default to the BIRS.

He urged management of the institution and the BIRS to quickly resolve the issue to avoid disrupting academic activities in the institution.

When contacted, the in-stitution’s Public Relations Officer, Dr. Joseph Fanafa, said: “We are maintaining a dignified silence on the matter until the outcome of our meeting with BIRS scheduled for today.”