Yusuf Oketola
TAX collectors from Osogbo West Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Awosuru, Osogbo, State of Osun, allegedly led some thugs to Osun Mall last Monday to disrupt business activities over a disagreement between management of the mall and the authorities of the LCDA.
It was reported that the staff of the Osogbo West LCDA forcefully came into the mall with security operatives to seal up shops in the place over tax payments disagreement.
OSUN DEFENDER gathered that the thugs, who were eight in number and led by one Oloke, came after the security operatives with the tax collectors were helpless on the matter.
The Chief Executive Officer of Dessy Kitchen, Comrade Dare Eluyemi, who also doubles as the Head of Waste Management of the Osun Mall, said the Osogbo West LCDA tax collectors had few weeks ago came and went round shops in the mall to demand for tax payment without discussing anything with the management.
Eluyemi said: “Some weeks ago, some revenue collectors from Osogbo West LCDA came to the mall without meeting with the management and started going round shops to meet shop owners on tax payment. This actually is wrong in an organisedsetting because Osun Mall is different from a regular market place. So, the Mall is an entity not shops.
“The Management told them that they could not just come and approach shop owners to collect tax, that all they needed to do is to write the management on it. They have never written any letter to us since then.
“About 15 people from the local government came around again sometimes ago and threatened to seal people’s shops. Imagine that number of people at your store, your customers will be embarrassed. So, some of the shop owners paid out of fear.
“The amazing thing about it was that they gave each shop owners at the mall a sum of N30,000 as annual tax remittance. My question is that, how did they come across such uniform amount for all the shops, because some shops are bigger than others.
“They collected money from some people, while some refused to pay. I refused to pay because I told them that as a government person, I needed to advise them that if they need to collect revenue, they should write to the mall management. The same revenue that the local government wants to collect is same revenue which Ministry of Commerce came for as well that same day.
“I got a call on Monday that the tax collectors have come again and they have been sealing shops. I was told the mall management tore all the seals. The management said the tax collectors needed to inform them before doing anything in the mall.
“The tax collectors called security operatives and when they got to the mall, they met something different from the story they were told on phone.
“When the tax collectors realised that the security operatives could not do anything, they called some thugs led by one Oloke. The thugs came and started beating my workers. The thugs are about eight. I told my staff to record them. At the point of recording, one of the thugs collected the phone and seized it before it was later given to the security operatives.
“The thugs came into the mall, carted away cash sum of N65,000 from the kitchen which was verified by the Police officers. They destroyed several things. Customers were here eating at the time they came, they told them to stand up and go without paying.
“This morning (Tuesday), I went to the Police station to collect the phone and insisted that I won’t pay anything in form of revenue to the local government until they do the needful.
When contacted, the Chairman of Osogbo West LCDA, Mr. Demola Layan, told OSUN DEFENDER that the matter had been resolved and declined further comments.
