By: Thaimu Bai Sesay
The Deputy Speaker of the Sierra Leone Parliament and Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Hon. Ibrahim Tawa Conteh, has issued a scathing critique of the National Revenue Authority (NRA) over its handling of tax assessments, collections, and audits.
During the final day of debates on the Fiscal Year 2025 National Budget in the Well of Parliament, Hon. Tawa underscored significant systemic flaws, calling for immediate reforms to plug revenue leakages and improve accountability.
“If the NRA is the player, referee, VAR, and almost everything else in the tax system, there is no way we can achieve accurate auditing,” Hon. Tawa stated, emphasizing the lack of transparency and proper checks in the current framework.
He revealed that several enterprises and entities audited by the NRA have disputed their assessments but still owe substantial amounts to the government, yet fail to settle their obligations. “This is because, the NRA assesses, confirms payments, validates payments, and reports payments all by itself. It’s a complete monopoly over the process,” he explained.
On missing revenue and systemic gaps, Hon. Tawa lamented that despite Sierra Leone’s significant revenue potential, the country has been unable to collect even 30 percent of its total tax capacity. He highlighted unresolved issues with the migration from the Asycuda World system to the Integrated Tax Administration System (ITAS), which he claimed led to a “zero” baseline in revenue tracking. “We are still struggling to understand what happened during that transition. Where is our money going?” he questioned, stressing that the unexplained discrepancies are costing the nation daily.
The Deputy Speaker further revealed that the lack of reconciliatory statements from tax handles, such as duties, GST and others, compounds the problem. “Without revenue, we cannot function as a country,” he warned, urging the activation of Regulations 65 and 70 to enforce monthly reconciliatory reporting and improve oversight.
Hon. Tawa argued that Parliament must prioritize addressing these critical revenue challenges to ensure sustainable economic growth. “We are losing money every day to other people. This should be a primary concern for the House,” he said, urging lawmakers to demand accountability from revenue-collecting agencies.
As the debate on the 2025 National Budget concluded, Hon. Tawa’s remarks served as a clarion call for urgent action to reform Sierra Leone’s tax administration and secure the financial resources necessary for the country’s development. His statements is enough to spark a national conversation on how best to address revenue inefficiencies and improve financial governance.