By Ricks Kayizzi
VICTORIA Insglass Limited have warned about 5,000 business operators of pending closures unless they pay up their trading fees immediately.
Victoria Insglass is the Kampala City Council (KCC) appointed agents for collecting licence fees in the central division.
Herbert Tumwesigye, the firm’s managing director said on Wednesday, unlike in the past when they used to issue default notices to traders, they now have resorted to closing businesses outright.
“Now the system has changed, because of the high costs of reaching all the traders, and the time wastage factor. Since we started our sensitisation campaign about payment of taxes on time in January, we have found it unnecessary to issue out more reminders,” he said.
“We are ready to take these defaulters to court to be charged with illegal trading,” Tumwesigye said.
He said the biggest defaulters are retail shop operators, newspaper vendors, fuel transporters and lock-up shops owners.
Victoria Insglass recently closed down 500 shops, before their owners hurriedly paid up their dues.
Tumwesigye, however said, Kampala business people are slowly taking up the culture of paying their license fees on time. He said about 66% or 10,000 out of 15,000 businesses in the central division have already met their financial obligations.
“We are so much encouraged that the response this time round has been very positive, compared to that of the previous years. Many people have started looking at paying taxes as an obligation, and not a penalty,” he said.
Tumwesigye said about 30 of their officials and another 10 KCC law enforcement officers are taking part in the tax recovery operation.
Places that have so far been covered include Kisekka market, Balikuddembe market, Kamwokya, Kisenyi, Katwe and the Industrial Area.
KCC has out-sourced most of it’s revenue collection acitivities this year.
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