TJ&GP Hosts Stakeholders Workshop to Boost Inclusive Tax Grievance System
By Mustapha Salisu
As part of efforts to strengthen Kano State’s tax system and make it more inclusive and citizen-friendly, the Tax Justice and Governance Platform, in collaboration with the Kano Internal Revenue Service (KIRS), has hosted a two-day capacity building and gender-responsive workshop aimed at enhancing the existing Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM).
PRIME TIME NEWS reports that the meeting held between Monday and Tuesday in Kano supported by the International Budget Partnership and facilitated by Follow Taxes pulled stakeholders from across the country who shared insights on how grievance resolution systems can deepen public engagement and accountability in tax administration.
Speaking at the workshop, Program Lead of Tax Justice and Governance Platform, Sadiq Muhammad Mustapha, emphasized the importance of collecting disaggregated data through the GRM system.
He explained that the system was developed in partnership with KIRS to effectively gather and address taxpayers’ grievances, complaints, and inquiries.
“This two-day workshop brings together stakeholders from KIRS, market leaders, women groups, the media, and the Joint Association of Persons with Disabilities. The goal is to create a framework that is gender-responsive and inclusive of other intersectionalities such as disability and social status,” he stated.
Sadiq added that the platform has received positive feedback on the functionality of the GRM system and is now exploring innovative ways to use the tool for informed decision-making and proactive policy development.
“With the data generated, we will be able to visualize how many women and men access the GRM services, the nature of complaints by location, and recurring issues like extortion and harassment. This will guide us in crafting solutions that prevent challenges before they even arise,” he noted.
Also speaking, Muhammad Abba Aliyu, Executive Director of Compliance and Enforcement at KIRS, emphasized the critical role GRM plays in enhancing taxpayer satisfaction.
“Since the inception of the GRM unit, our ability to respond swiftly to taxpayer complaints has significantly improved. This has built trust and encouraged more people to pay their taxes as and when due,” he said.
Also speaking, Dr. Abimbola Abdulrahman Lekki, Assistant Director and Head of Research at the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service (LIRS), highlighted similarities between the GRM model in Kano and the taxpayer service unit in Lagos.
“We run a taxpayer customer service system with over 25 staff handling complaints via e-tax portals, self-service platforms, emails, and walk-ins. From what we’ve seen here, Kano’s GRM is promoting a closer relationship between tax administrators and the public. This model clearly contributes to improved revenue collection,” She said.
Dr. Lekki further noted that increasing public awareness of such mechanisms is vital. “Many taxpayers want to engage but don’t know how. Once there’s more education on how to use these channels, voluntary compliance will rise,” She added.
On his part, Ted Roland Andekin From Taraba State Board of Internal Revenue Service lauded KIRS’s effort, describing Kano’s model as a learning curve. “This visit is to understudy the GRM structure. There is often a disconnect between tax administrators and payers. But with this kind of feedback system, taxpayers will feel their concerns matter and will be more willing to pay,” he remarked.
On her part, Chika Okoh, Senior Programme Coordinator with The International Budget Partnership, underscored the importance of equity in taxation. “Tax equity means everyone pays according to their ability. The tax system should recognize income disparities through thresholds, exemptions, and rate categorization,” she explained.
Also speaking, Haliru Ahmed Khalifa, Executive Director of Transparency and Accountability in Totality (TinT), stated that the GRM conversation is aimed at strengthening the existing complaint-handling structures at KIRS.
“This event is about refining how taxpayer feedback is gathered through various channels phone calls, social media, emails and how it is tracked. A performance scorecard is also being developed to monitor the GRM’s impact,” he said.
PRIME TIME NEWS reports that, highlights of the workshop includes paper presentations, breakout sessions and developing action plans for next steps and way forward.
