Judiciary Warns Against Donor Dependence
The Hon. Justice Dr. Bamwine
The\r\nJudiciary is willing to help the tax body increase its revenue collection on\r\nthe grounds that it is time the country washed her hands off the donor\r\ndependence.
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According to Principal Judge, Hon. Justice Dr. Yorokamu\r\nBamwine, the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) on its own cannot take on this\r\nchallenge of ensuring 100 per cent revenue collection.
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\r\nSpeaking at URA workshop on emerging trends in tax law and tax administration\r\nat Lake Victoria Serena Resort on April 8, 2015, Hon. Justice Bamwine said URA\r\nand the tax tribunal cannot succeed in executing their mandates without the\r\nsupport of the other state agencies, including the Judiciary.
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He\r\nsaid: "It is common knowledge that with time some development partners have\r\nsuspended, or withdrawn their budgetary support. It is appropriate that URA has\r\nadopted a spirited approach and means of ensuring that gaps in our revenue\r\ncollection system are sealed.”
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He\r\ncontinued: "With this sort of training, the Judiciary can also help URA in\r\nsealing those gaps so that Uganda can also stand on its own and develop like\r\nother countries, notably the far Eastern countries whose governments depend to\r\na large extent on taxes and their frugal utilization.”
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Previously,\r\nthe role of Judiciary in revenue collection was only pronounced in the\r\ncollection of graduated tax, which has since been abolished. The URA\r\nCommissioner General, Ms Doris Akol, said URA will reach out to all\r\nstakeholders with a view to engage them on their responsibilities towards tax\r\nobligations.
This Story was published by Monitor on April 9, 2015
Posted 9th, April 2015
