We Have Raised Substantial Amount, We Need Counting Machines Says Market Chairman
By Julie Sylvia
The Chairman of Onitsha Main market, Chief Innocent Ezeoha(Ezennia) said that the market needs counting machines to be able to count the Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) being generated for the State Government.
This, he said is as a result of the recent meeting with the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Chief Ernest Ezeajughi, ASMATA President, Mr Humphrey Anuna and Chairmen of the markets in the State at ASMATA Office Onitsha, after the inauguration of the ASMATA President,Mr Anuna.
With an outcome that every market chairman should collect all the supposedly fees(IGR) from Traders and pay into Government account before the year runs out.
”Here, we are running main market like the Nigerian federation, Federal, State and Local Government, so we have Line, zonal and central, with fully executive functional.
”Even if we are given 1,2 weeks to raise the money, I will force every line to raise all the government revenues, to the zones and the central who will submit them to the government account.
”The problem before was that main market submit 1.5M to the government account, but since I came in, only one line pay I Million plus, the market has structure and the structure is working to raise the IGR.
”We generate 30 Million plus generally, yesterday, almost 40Million was paid and brought in,which we cannot count easily, we only count 17 million out of 40 Million.
”We are pleading to the State Government to provide counting machines, this will help us to bring more money and pay into governments account, because the faster you count, the more you collect.
On the enumeration of Traders, the Chairman said that they suspended it for now, that they want to raise the IGR first, then the government can come and enumerate the remaining people who have not, stressing that raising the money is very important so that the Governor will see the money to use for all his good works he have for the State which is verifiable.
On the security especially this Christmas, he said that”We are networking our security within the market, we seize goods from barrow pushers who did not have the owner of the goods he carries on accompany, until the owners appear.
”If the owner did not appear, we parked the goods in the office and make announcement for the owner to come and claim them.
“With these,we have recovered many goods from bad boys who wanted to hide from the owner of the goods they carry.
