AfricaPress-Tanzania: President Samia Suluhu Hassan directed Tuesday the Tanzania Revenue Authority (TRA) to urgently resolve tax wrangles with foreign investors insisting oppressive tax regimes are uncalled for.
President Samia ordered the authority’s Commissioner General Alphayo Kidata to ensure fairness in discharging tax laws.
Speaking shortly after administering the oath of integrity to Permanent Secretaries and their Deputies as well as various head of government institutions the president said: “tax collection must be conducted effectively and will not allow oppressive tax systems that are forcing business to be shut down.”
The systems have been so hush that most foreign investors are opting to close their domestic operations. It was not clear the number of firms, but the President said “it’s not a secret … businesses are being shut down.”
President Samia demanded TRA to adopt polite approaches that can help collect revenue without creating chaos with the investors.
“Go and collect tax, we need taxes but we don’t want oppressive approaches,” she said suggesting the authority to set a special task force that will help craft better ways of collecting taxes.
