By Anayo Okoli, Umuahia
ABIA State Government has frowned at the activities of revenue consultants who operate in the state over their mode of operation which has been an embarrassment to the government.

The government regretted that some revenue consultants operate illegally in the state, especially in Aba, the commercial capital where they employ all manner of crude methods, using police to extort money from the people in the name of revenue which is not paid to the government.

Most worrisome is the activities of a group led one Mr. Abaecheta that has been visiting offices of media houses in Aba, including Saturday Vanguard, harassing the staff in collaboration with some policemen illegally procured, trying to extort money from them.

The said Abaecheta has been asking the media houses to pay the state physical planning levy. The levy was introduced sometime this year and it is to be paid per building and by the landlord or the tenants can pay in agreement with the landlord. And the law setting up the levy said no cash payment should be made to any person but directly to the designated banks in Government Accounts.

But the group has been going round trying to collect this levy flat by flat even above the legislated amount and even demand cash.

They go about boasting that even if contacts were made to even the state governor, nothing would happen.

Worried by the activities of people and agencies like this, the Government during its last cabinet meeting set up a committee, under the leadership of the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Chief Umeh Kalu to “articulate modalities for effective, sustainable and accountable revenue collection for the state”.

The commissioner for Information and Strategy, Chief Don Ubani who briefed journalists on the outcome of the cabinet meeting condemned the activities of these revenue agents, many of whom he said were not known to the government.

He said that the government has taken serious action to checkmate their activities and ensure that only registered revenue consultants or agents work for the government ant their revenue drive “must have a human face”.

“Every revenue consultant who is not officially engaged by the appropriate agency of the state government ceases, henceforth, to have anything to do with revenue collection in the state and revenue drive inn the state must have a human face while every revenue collected must be paid into the state’s consolidated account”, Ubani explained, saying that it was the decision of the executive council meeting.