FIRS names Dangote most tax compliant
By Jeffrey Agbo
Dangote Group and its subsidiaries over the weekend received Nigeria’s best compliant taxpayer business organisation award and FMDQ Gold award winner for being the most active corporate organisation in the foreign exchange market.
Dangote Industries Limited (DIL) and Bluestar Shipping, a subsidiary, were recognised as the most compliant in tax payment in the country ahead of the MTN Communication while the country’s leading cement manufacturer, Dangote Cement Plc, at another occasion won three awards at the FMDQ Gold Awards held in Lagos.
During the Special Day of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at the just concluded Lagos International Trade Fair, the nation’s tax regulators adjudged Dangote Industries Limited as the most compliant taxpayers in Nigeria.
Several speakers at the event including FIRS State Administration Lagos Mainland, Ishola Akingbade, who represented the Chairman of FIRS commended these companies for their high levels of compliance which makes tax administration easy.
Head of Tax Compliance at Dangote Industries Ltd, Dr. Titi Fowokan speaking on the journey leading to the recognition by FIRS stated that “Dangote as a Group has a Tax Policy that is based on zero tolerance for tax non-compliance. As good corporate citizens, we comply with all relevant laws, including tax laws. Also, complying with the tax payment statutory deadlines ensures that we do not fall foul of the law, which stipulates penalties for non-compliance.”
According to her, Dangote Group achieved compliance by putting in place world-class processes that align with the requirements of the tax laws and regulations, putting into consideration the need to strictly adhere to statutory timeliness and eliminate costs of non-compliance.
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“We pride ourselves in the Dangote Brand and seek to promote a tax compliance culture, which demonstrates our corporate responsibility to the government for the provision of public goods and services for the citizens,” she added.
Fowokan explained that the company as part of steps to achieve compliance maintained its best practice tax governance culture, ensured accurate tax computation and timely remittance to avoid penalties & interest arising from tax compliance defaults. She affirmed that these steps helped to minimise tax audit risks and avoid the incidence of tax litigations.
In another development, Dangote Cement Plc emerged as the Largest Commercial Paper Quotation on FMDQ and Single Largest Corporate Debt Issue on FMDQ. Dangote Industries Ltd also emerged as the “Most active corporate in the foreign exchange market”.
The FMDQ GOLD Awards, (Global Competitiveness, Operational Excellence, Liquidity and Diversity), is a corporate tradition that recognises the resilience and agility of the Nigerian financial markets’ participants.
The award acknowledges the valuable efforts of these stakeholders, whose participation in the FMDQ markets and across the financial market infrastructure value chain of FMDQ’s businesses – Securities Exchange, Central Counterparty and Depository – have positively shaped the course of the markets and invariably impacted the development of the Nigerian economy.