A Report Exposes Tax, Customs and State Property Violations in 16 Wilayas

A new parliamentary report reveals shocking abuses at the level of customs, tax and state property services in 16 Wilayas, which were the subject of inquiry visits by the mission of the Finance and Budget Committee of the National People’s Assembly, which resulted in weak tax and customs collection in these Wilayas and weakening state revenues.

The Finance and Budget Committee of the People’s National Assembly has finalized its final report on tax collection, the fate of customs seizures and the reality of the land survey process in the Wilayas, which will be submitted to the Chairman of the Lower House of Parliament within 10 days after investigations of the members of the committee in 16 Wilayas.

A member of the Finance and Budget Committee Zinelabidine Didiche told Echorouk that the investigation revealed shocking abuses, especially concerning the issue of poor tax collection and the process of surveying land in the inspected wilayas.

“The committee stood on the progress of the work of the real estate governorates and the extent of their implementation of the minister’s instructions. The first was issued in January 2021, which stipulates the necessity of granting real estate books within a deadline of 30 days from the date of applying, and the members of the investigation committee also stopped at the problems and obstacles that stand in the way of delivering the books within their legal deadlines”, he added.

“Concerning tax collection and obstacles that prevent satisfactory results, due to poor management within the centres or as a result of the long period of receipt of tax documents and the lack of offices and workers in the holding, which raises several questions. The mechanisms adopted in dealing with financial institutions, such as banks and the treasury, concerning information about taxpayers and the approved methods to simplify procedures to encourage friendly collection”, he explained.

As for the work of the customs sector, which had a share in the committee’s report, Didiche said that the members of the investigation committee looked at the extent to which what was stated in the customs law concerning customs reconciliation and the reasons that stand in the way of the collection process, and the reality of seizures at the level of customs sheds to consider the extent of their conformity with the provisions of the Finance Law of 2022, in particular, Article 300 of the Customs Law related to the sale of seizures and the role of customs agents in combating smuggling and controlling the border barter trade, especially between Mali and Niger.

According to the head of the Information Committee, the report included a set of proposals and solutions to overcome the difficulty of tax collection, by reconsidering some legal standards that tax aid encounters during the collection process, providing material and moral means that contribute to improving the tax process and reducing pressure and wasting time for the agent and the customer alike, it is preceded by accelerating the process of digitizing the sector and connecting it to state institutions, especially banks.