By Oswald Hanciles, Freetown.

The acting Commissioner-General of the National Revenue Authority (NRA), Ms. Haja Kallah-Kamara, yesterday called on Tax Consultants to evolve a form of union that could be a regulatory body to better collaborate with the NRA in providing better services for taxpayers/tax clients, and increasing revenues for government.

Ms. Kallah-Kamara made this appeal during a Workshop organized by the NRA’s Income Tax Department (ITD) and the Goods and Tax Administration Unit (GST) for Tax Consultants. This Workshop was held at the Shangri La Complex, Kingston-Upon-Hall Way at Lumley Beach, Freetown, on July 29, 2010.

The importance of the Tax Consultants as key stakeholders in the NRA’s Tax Administration system was underlined by the NRA making public its plans to shortly activate the Domestic Taxes Department (DTD) in the NRA. The DTD, which will come into effect this year, will mean that two current domestic revenue generating operational departments/agencies in the NRA ( Income Tax Department and Good s and Services Tax Unit [GST]) will be merged, and just two operational departments will emerge in the NRA – namely, the Customs and Excise Department (CED) and the Domestic Taxes Department (DTD).

Ms. Kallah-Kamara, a seasoned accountant with over 20 years experience in several leading companies/NGOs in the United Kingdom, told the assembled body of Tax Consultants that the DTD will be part of the Modernisation Programme of the NRA. She appealed for a new partnership between NRA and not only the Tax Consultants, but, a partnership between the NRA and all Sierra Leoneans, including Civil Society, and the Press’.

“The DTD will be one more success story of the Agenda for Change of H.E. Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma. It will integrate different tax bodies; encourage specialization; and significantly increase revenues, and would help our country to become less dependent on foreign donors”, Ms. Kallah-Kamara said.

The acting Commissioner of the Income Tax Department (ITD), Ibrahim Sorie Kamara, expounding further on the DTD, said that the DTD will end the relatively fragmented Tax Administration system today, and “will see the taxpayer who has to deal with Customs department and the Income Tax Department dealing with a much easier system that will make him/her dealing with a single system in the NRA”.

Commenting on the criteria for a firm to be classified as a Tax Consultant, Mr. Ibrahim Sorie Kamara said that primarily, an accounting firm must be recognized by the legal regulatory body, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sierra Leone (ICASL). He also stressed that Tax Consultants must always manifest highest integrity, so that their clients would not be bothered with facing penalties, and incurring of interests on their tax obligations to the NRA.

The Assistant Commissioner, GST, Alfred Akibo-Betts, said that the joint workshop of the ITD and GST manifest the readiness of the department/unit to soon have the Domestic Tax Department (DTD) functioning. He floated a vision of a Sierra Leone Institute of Taxation that would further enhance the policy of the NRA consulting with taxpayers/stakeholders. He said that he hopes that in the future taxpayers/stakeholders would not only be involved in developing policy on taxation, but, even greatly influence the making of taxation laws. He bemoaned the tendency of some firms who collude with taxpayers to defraud government; and with some Tax Consultancy firms not even employing the required number of Chartered Accountants.

Mr. Akibo-Betts called for the immediate activation of the Board of Appellate Commissioners where taxpayers would seek redress when they think the NRA would not be treating them fairly.

The group of Tax Consultants who listened with rapt attention to the DFID-recruited consultant hired to guide the NRA in the formation of the Domestic Tax Department, Ugandan-born Christopher K. Kaweesa, included B & C Consultancy; WinCrowther, Peter Kamaray & Co.; Emile Kargbo & Associates; Panell Kerr Forster; Bertin and Bertin, KPMG, K. Consulting (SL); and also Institute of Chartered Accountants representatives.

The NRA was represented by some of its Senior Management staff, including Director of Modernization, Alfred Demby, Deputy Director of the ITD, Syl Clemens, Head of Public Affairs and Tax Education, Oswald Hanciles, GST’s Principal Collector, Hassan Omolaja, ITD’s Principal Collector, Edward Siaffa, among others.