Government agencies should harmonise data across Nigeria’s identity registries for National Identification Numbers (NIN) and Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) to check tax evasion in Nigeria, according to Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, Minister of Interior.
The Interior Minister who made this call on Monday at a meeting with Olusegun Adesokan, Secretary of the Joint Tax Board (JTB), underscored the importance of using technology to unify Nigerians’ data and identity systems.
The Minister who wants the Tax Board to create solutions for the harmonisation of data and identity systems said that “the NIN of Nigerians should be the unique security identifier, as it would display tax status and all the relevant information needed.”
Tunji-Ojo said that while some agencies like the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the National Identification Management Commission (NIMC) have already taken steps to link NINs with SIM records, he wants same integration extended to critical agencies like the JTB and the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) “for their collaboration to achieve better results.”
According to the Minister, the primary goal of the call is to tackle the tax evasion issue among Nigerians noting that “technologically , if there is a way we can bring our NIN and TIN to be one number, we will make it difficult for people to evade tax.
“The relationship between the Joint Tax Board and Nigeria Immigration Service, should be like siamese twins. If there is a synergy, a lot will be achieved.”
By embracing technology for data harmonisation, the Minister reckons that government agencies can address issues related to data and tax evasion more effectively.
On his part, Adesokan, Secretary of JTB, said that the aim of his working visit to the Interior Ministry was to seek further meaningful collaboration to enhance capacity building with the NIS and commence dialogue on issues relating to expatriate data and expatriate tax.
Home
