Fayose sacks Board chairman as two are arrested for forging Ekiti revenue receipts

The Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has sacked the Chairman of the Ekiti State Internal Revenue Board for alleged fraud running into millions of Naira.
The Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, Etop James, joined Fayose on Friday to parade two racketeers, who forged the receipts for the collection of the newly introduced Tippers’ Haulage fee.
The culprits – Omotayo Ojo, a staff of the revenue board, and a printer, Akinniyi Akinsola, had made confessional statements to the police upon interrogation.
Ojo and Akinsola also indicted some staff of the board, who are said to be members of the syndicate.
While being quizzed at the parade ground, Ojo said he has made a profit of N250,000 from the fraudulent business.
He said he had been in the business with the backings of some powerful few in the
board.
He said he printed 10 parcels of receipts through which he had been duping the government, while collecting N500 rate per trip from tipper owners.
Though the specific amount involved in the scam was not immediately known, insider sources said it could run into millions.
The governor, in a terse statement signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Modupe Alade, said the Chairman of the revenue board, Ropo Ogunjobi, who also doubles as the Special Assistant to Fayose on revenue matters, should hand over to the most senior officer in the board.
The governor, while handing them over to the Police Commissioner, said the duo will be prosecuted to serve as deterrent to others.
Fayose, who expressed regret that workers could still engage in massive pilfering of the state’s revenues in spite of the parlous state of the state’s economy, said he had it on good authority that some staff of the board were also issuing fake tax clearance certificates and number plates to unsuspecting residents.
He said: “The people should stop paying to the officials of the board.
“They should pay to the banks because these touts are on rampage and they can dupe you.
“Ekiti needs money and you all know that this has been the headache of this government and we have been doing our best to shore up the revenue, but these people are desperate to thwart our efforts.
“They are cornering our money.
“We will do everything to sanitise the board and ensure that money meant for Ekiti are paid directly.”