Imo State governor, Emeka Ihedioha, on Wednesday signed three bills into law, bringing the number of bills he has signed into law since he assumed office on May 29, 2019 to 11.
The three bills are Imo State Hotel Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Tax Law, Imo State Employment and Empowerment Trust Fund Law, and Imo State Signage and Advertisement Agency (Establishment) Law.
At the signing ceremony which took place at the Sam Mbakwe Expanded Executive Council Chambers, Ihedioha elucidated on the significance and benefits of the law.
According to him, the Imo State Hotel and Occupancy and Restaurant Consumption Tax Law is aimed at sanitising the consumer sub-sector of the tourism sector in the state with the intent of boosting revenue of the state for its overall development.
He noted that the law was not designed to tax Imo citizens arbitrarily but to place minimal tax on tourists coming to the state with a view to generating revenue for the development of the state.
Ihedioha said the Imo State Employment and Empowerment Trust Fund Law will aid job creation in the state, particularly for the teeming young population.
On the third law, Imo State Signage and Advertisement Agency, he said the law does not seek to establish an agency on advertisements, but to streamline and regulate indiscriminate display of signs and advertisements across the State.
He showered praises on members of the Imo State House of Assembly for being proactive.
He said,”The Imo State House of Assembly is perhaps the most proactive and accomplished House of Assembly in the nation and in the state.
“Eleven bills passed into law by the House of Assembly within a period of six months is a major accomplishment. Many Houses of Assembly may not pass eleven bills into law in four years,” he declared.
The governor urged the Speaker and his colleagues to maintain the spirit with a view to accelerating the rebuilding process, which according to him, “is already yielding significant results.”
Imo State Deputy Governor, Gerald Irona; Speaker of the House of Assembly, Chiji Collins; Deputy Speaker, Okey Onyekanma; Clerk of the House, Chinelo Emeghara; Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Special Adviser to the Governor on Legislative Matters, Nnaemeka Maduagwu, were present at the ceremony.
