Abia Govt denies imposing N450m levy on filling stations
yarkarkara
The Abia State government has debunked reports which accused it of imposing “draconian taxation” and “ruthless enforcement on businesses and individuals in the state”.
The state government which said that it had already abolished touting and introduced a Single Treasury Account for accountability, also denied imposing N450 million on each filling station in Abia.
A statement issued by Emmanuel Okpechi, the Special Adviser to Governor Alex Otti on Internally Generated Revenue, on Sunday, said that multiple ticketing and extortions have been stopped in the state through the introduction of the Harmonized Task Force.
He said that all government revenues are paid into a single account to plug leakages, improve cash management and tackle opaque accounts.
Okpechi further explained that the daily e-ticket for tricycles is N500, stressing that the amount was the level tricycle unions indicated that they could shoulder.
“The notion that N450 million is charged per filling station is false, bogus and illogical.
“If a single station were to pay N450 million in “fees,” what revenue would be left for them to operate? There is no such levy anywhere in Abia’s approved schedules.”
The government equally denied any agreement to give 15 percent of Abia State 2025 revenue to Access Bank, explaining that the two bodies are only
in “professional partnership to strengthen financial processes and technology”.
Okpechi urged Abia residents to pay through approved channels like AbiaPay, banks, approved PoS/e-channels and insist on their e-receipt, adding that any touting activity, unofficial tickets or cash demands should be reported to the Harmonised Task Force.
