By Moses Nosike

The Lagos State Internal Revenue Service Secondary School Essay Competition on Taxation has commenced its 4th edition with the objective of introducing the youths, the leaders of tomorrow with the issue of tax administration so that in future they will not deviate from paying tax when they must have gained employed after leaving school. The competition as well tends to motivate the students for excellent performance at the end of the competition.

The competition which has kicked off few weeks ago with 300 schools participating both from junior and senior secondary schools gives the students the opportunity to prove their ability in writing and how they approach questions. In selection breakdown 70% goes for public schools and 30% for private schools respectively.

When answering questions in writing on taxation, students have been advised to answer within the maximum of 500 words. They will also be called for defence in order to determine if they actually wrote the essays themselves. During defence, making scheme will base on linking of key words to taxation, discussion, grammar, coherence and confidence.

After the writing exercise, six winners are expected to emerge for prizes, three from the junior secondary school and three from the senior secondary school as well.

From the management of the Lagos Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), 1st winner will go home with the sum of N250,000, 2nd winner, N200,000 and 3rd winner150,000. Scholarship and full computer systems for schools that performed excellently while consolidated prizes for participants in the competition to encourage those students that participated but didn’t win.

According to the Executive Chairman of Internal Revenue Service, Mr. Babatunde Fowler, the important of tax is for the well being of Nigeria and it’s the same thing in the world all over. “I believe Lagos state has come quite a big time and to continue that momentum we need to start educating our leaders of tomorrow on taxation so that when we pass, the leaders of tomorrow who are still in the secondary schools can now take over.

“We do have a future, may be a future of pension etc. But the future that the new generation is looking towards to is the type of future where the standard of living will not be classified as a third world mission.

“For our children to enjoy free education offered by Lagos state, parents have to pay tax because we still have a lot of parents and guidance who sent not one but five to six children to schools without paying taxes. Millennium development goals cannot be achieved in Lagos state without an effective tax system. Poverty cannot be eradicated when people don’t pay taxes.

“To promote good standard of living, put structures in place, build infrastructure and make our educational system what it should be, people should honestly pay their taxes to enable government achieve results that would benefit of youths of tomorrow.