Delta State Governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, has said payment of taxes by individuals and organisations is not a punishment.
Uduaghan stated this when he inaugurated the State Board of Internal Revenue in Asaba on Saturday.
Urging individuals and organisations not to see the collection of taxes by the government as a punishment, the governor noted that it was part of their civil responsibilities to the development of society.
He stressed that the government was only enforcing the laws as entrenched in the constitution and urged Nigerians to pay their taxes regularly to sustain infrastructural development.
He said, "The payment of taxes is not a form of punishment on citizens but a civic and moral responsibility which all citizens should willingly exercise. We should all pay our taxes and expect returns on the taxes through sustained tempo of the provision of infrastructure in all sectors of the economy.
"In all societies, taxes are necessary to prop government's revenue and shore up its expenditure, especially now that the world is coming to terms with the dire consequences of global economic meltdown."
