Idigbe pledges to impact on Delta economy

As an association president, the senior partner at Punuka Attorneys and Solicitors, Chief Anthony Idigbe (SAN), has pledged to make a meaningful impact on both the public and private sectors in Delta State.

He made the pledge during his investiture as the president of the Delta Association of Chamber of Commerce Industry, Mines and Agriculture (DACCIMA) in Asaba, Delta State.

The senior lawyer said he would build on the legacies of his predecessors and assured of DACCIMA’s readiness to partner with the state government in realising his mandate. ‘

“My vision for the association is encapsulated in these words ‘to build the most formidable platform for the fourth industrial revolution in Delta State’. Our problem in the state is that we have oil and it is practically a curse by all intent and purposes, because it is a resource that would eventually expire,’’ he said.

Among other things, Idigbe echoed the many benefits of identifying with the chamber of commerce, even as he charged the state government to deploy resources in non-oil business ventures.

“Therefore, we want an ultramodern trade fair complex in Osubi and other parts of the state; we are demanding it from the government. We (DACCIMA) will manage it and ensure that it is run according to international best practice,’’ he stated.

At the event, Delta State government expressed its readiness to partner with DACCIMA to motivate industrial revolution in the state.

The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Chief Patrick Ukah, who was the chairman of the occasion, stressed the efforts of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa-led administration to plug all loopholes of multiple taxations in the state.

He called on DACCIMA to support government in creating a more conducive environment for businesses to thrive.

The Commissioner for Trade and Investment, Mr. Churchill Amagada, said that the Board of Internal Revenue has addressed some of the concerns raised by the organised private sector through the harmonisation of tax receipts.

While decorating Idigbe as the new leader of the association, the immediate-past president of DACCIMA, Chief Makinde Willams, urged all members and executives to cooperate and support the new president to better the fortunes of the group.

In his lecture titled, “Impact of Multiple Taxation in the Industrial Development of Delta State’’, Prof Abiola Sanni (SAN) said that multiple taxations require structural reforms of the tax system that will enable local governments generate sufficient revenue to finance their expenditure.

He charged DACCIMA to set an agenda and lead dynamic tax reforms in the state, track fiscal developments and seek to influence laws, and lead legal challenges to curb multiple taxations, while recommending that the Federal Government should limit its incursion in the fiscal turf of the state.

At the investiture, DACCIMA gave several awards to some dignitaries including, the former president, Makinde; Rear Admiral Andrew Okoja; the Group Managing Director of Rainoil Limited, Dr. Gabriel Ogbeche; and the Vice Chancellor of Delta State University, Abraka, Prof Andy Egwunyenga.

Others are Engr Davidson Uvietowhado, Chief Broderick Arigbodi, Dr Eze­kiel Idiakhoa and Dr Austin Egbegbadia.