99% of Enugu informal sector evade taxes – ESIRS chairman

The Chairman of the Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (ESIRS), Emmanuel Nnamani, says 99 per cent of informal sector operators in the state fail to remit taxes to government coffers.

Speaking at a media briefing in Enugu on Thursday, Nnamani dismissed social media claims that the state imposes arbitrary levies, describing such reports as “false and misleading.”

He stressed that all taxes in the state are within the limits of the law and guided by the Personal Income Tax Act (as amended).

According to him, while compliance is seamless among those in formal employment under the Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) system, the informal sector—especially market traders and transport operators—remains a major challenge due to interference from non-state actors collecting revenues illegally.

“When I assumed office, we discovered that 99 per cent of informal sector players were not paying taxes.

“To address this, the state introduced a ₦36,000 annual consolidated levy for market traders, covering environmental sanitation (ESWAMA), signage fees, local government stallage, and business premises charges,” he said.

Nnamani explained that the levy is payable between January and March each year, after which defaulters face enforcement.

Street vendors outside formal markets are required to pay ₦30,000 annually, while transport operators, including Okada, Keke, minibuses, trucks, and tankers, pay through a daily ticketing system.

He stressed that Enugu’s tax regime is in line with federal laws and similar to systems operating in other states.

“Our job is to apply the law fairly and ensure our people prosper, not to compete with other states,” he added.