APPEAL COURT HALTS RIVERS AND LAGOS STATE FROM COLLECTING VALUE ADDED TAX FEW HOURS AFTER SANWOOLU SIGNS BILL
There appears to be more hurdles to cross for Rivers and Lagos State in their drive to domestic collection of Value Added Tax in their states as Justice Haruna Simon Tsanami of an appeal court sitting in Abuja halted the two states from collecting same until all legal disputes relating to the issues have been resolved at the supreme court.
The court ordered that the state high court judgment for states to collect their VAT should be stepped aside and the status quo remains as the Federal Inland Revenue Service FIRS should be the one to collect any tax relating to Value pending when the issues are resolved.
Justice Tsanami who issued the order in Abuja on Friday also directed that the law passed by Rivers State House of Assembly and assented to by Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike and Governor Sanwoolu must not be implemented and if implemented it would be a contempt against the court.
The matter has been slated for September 16 for a hearing of the motion for joinder by Lagos State. FIRS, in an appeal marked CA/PH/282/2021, is praying the court to set aside the judgment of a Rivers State High Court which granted powers to the state to collect Value Added Tax, VAT. The tax collection agency is also asking the appellate court to stay the execution of Rivers’ judgment.
It would be recalled that Governor BAbajide Sanwoolu just signed the controversial VAT Bill into law after returning from a trip to Abuja. With the court ruling on the suspension of the bill.
