BY SAM OTUONYE
The Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (ESiRS) recently at the Nike Lake Resort Hotel in Enugu, convened a two-day leadership retreat to find ways of taking a vintage opportunities that the new tax bill of the federal government would present to the state.
The retreat, facilitated by a team from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Nigeria, led by Partner and Head of Tax, Chijioke Uwaegbute, and consultant Ebele Enemchukwu, former Mrs. Tourism United Nations, focused on enhancing strategic reasoning among the agency’s management and senior personnel.
In his opening remarks, ESiRS Executive Chairman Mr. Emmanuel Ekene Nnamani highlighted the significant transformations within the agency since his tenure began.
“We all know where we came from as a revenue service, without technical training and knowledge, but today, there is a total transformation and tremendous changes,” he stated.
Despite these advancements, Nnamani acknowledged the need for continued improvement, noting that current revenue performance statistics do not fully reflect the agency’s progress. “We cannot beat our chest and say that we have met the mark we set out for this year,” he admitted.
Looking ahead, Nnamani announced plans for a possible status change in 2025 that would lead to increased staff remuneration, contingent upon the agency achieving financial self-sustainability. He emphasized the importance of proactive leadership in driving revenue growth, stating, “We have made some progress in withholding tax return, but we have an opportunity to improve on this. We have to work to have the leadership that supports it.”
Chijioke Uwaegbute of PwC commended Nnamani’s forward-thinking approach. “I have to applaud the Executive Chairman, Mr. Emmanuel Nnamani, for being visionary in his approach to tax administration in the state,” Uwaegbute remarked. “Once he heard about the expected new tax law and the withholding tax coming up, he proactively called his team together to say let’s understand what this new bill is, let’s understand what this new withholding tax is, let’s prepare ourselves. And to me, that’s visionary leadership.”
Uwaegbute’s endorsement is backed by PwC’s global reputation as a leading professional services firm, ranked as the second-largest professional services network in the world and renowned for its expertise in tax, assurance, and advisory services.
Participants at the retreat echoed this sentiment. Nwabueze Chukwude, Director of Administration and Supplies, noted, “The strategic insights gained here are invaluable for our operational efficiency.”
Similarly, Director of Assessment Henrietta Amadi stated, “This retreat has equipped us with the tools to better align with the state’s development goals.”
A retired Director and tax expert Simeon Njoku added, “Nnamani’s leadership is steering ESiRS towards a more proactive and effective tax administration.”
The retreat underscores ESiRS’s commitment to strategic management, aligning with global best practices that emphasize the importance of forward-thinking leadership in tax administration. As noted in a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), “Strategic management is a cyclical, end-to-end process of managing an organization, in this case a tax administration, to achieve planned outcomes.”
By fostering a culture of strategic reasoning and proactive leadership, Nnamani aims to position ESiRS as a model for effective tax administration, in line with the Enugu State Governor’s development agenda.