BIRS Chairman Refutes Sanitation Funding Allegations

Joseph Kwaghgba, the Executive Chairman of the Benue State Internal Revenue Service (BIRS), addressed allegations made by Anta Igbaato, General Manager of the Benue State Environmental Sanitation Authority (BENSESSA), regarding the failure of BIRS to fund waste evacuation operations despite collecting sanitation levies. Kwaghgba stated that BIRS has no legal mandate to distribute funds to any government agency, emphasizing that its primary responsibility is to identify, assess, collect, and remit government revenue to the state’s coffers.

He explained that the disbursement of funds to agencies is managed by the Ministry of Finance through the Office of the Accountant-General after legislative appropriation. Kwaghgba also mentioned that BENSESSA receives statutory rebates from some of the revenue collected for environmental services and advised that any funding complaints should be directed to the appropriate authorities.

He clarified that BIRS's intervention in waste evacuation at the Modern Market was a voluntary response to an emergency, not a statutory duty.