A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF INCOME TAX AS A SOURCE OF REVENUE IN NIGERIA A CASE STUDY OF SAPELE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF DELTA STATE

ABSTRACT

This study was undertaken to find out income tax as a source of government revenue in Nigeria with a case study of Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State. The subjects were tax officials selected as respondents from Delta State. The subjects were tax officials selected as respondent from Delta State Government tax officer of Sapele Local Government Area. Base on this strength, the table showing statistics value percentage. The result of findings revealed that the contribution of income tax i.e. PYT and CYT is still experiencing depression in growth. A number of factor as unemployment, poor fiscal policy, problem of equity were cited among others as reason for the even found in the result of the findings and at the end of the project, recommendations were made on the ground that effective and efficient implementation of taxation progressive should be made use for the problem of equity. Employment opportunity should be provided for the unemployed to raise the number of tax payer thereby increasing income tax and the government should make practicable concept for a good tax system.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title i
Approval ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract v
Table of contents vi
Chapter One – Introduction
1.1 Background of the study 1
1.2 Statement of problem 2
1.3 Objective of the study 3
1.4 Research Question 4
1.5 Significance of the study 5
1.6 Scope of the Study 5
1.7 Limitation of the Study 6
Chapter Two – Literature review
2.1 introduction 8
2.2 The Purpose of Taxation 10
2.3 Reasons of Imposing Taxes 10
2.4 types of Taxes 10
2.5 Classification of Taxes 11
2.6 Cannons of Taxes 13
2.7 Characteristics of a Good Tax System 14
2.8 Who Pays Tax 15
2.9 Incidence of Taxation in Delta State 13
2.10 Benefits of Tax Payment 16
Chapter Three – Research methodology
3.1 Introduction 18
3.2 Research design 18
3.3 Population of the Student 18
3.4 Sampling Size 19
3.5 Sampling Techniques 19
3.6 Research Instrument 19
3.7 Validity of the Instrument 20
3.8 Reliability of the Instrument 20
3.9 Method of Data Collection 21
3.10 Method of Data Analysis 21
Chapter Four – Data Analysis and Interpretation
4.1 Introduction 23
4.2 Presentation and Analysis of Research Questionnaire/Hypothesis 23
Chapter Five – Summary conclusion and recommendation
5.0 Introduction 26
5.1 Summary of the research Findings 26
5.2 Conclusion 27
5.3 Recommendation 28
5.3 Suggestion for Further Study 29
References 30
Appendix I 31
Questionnaire 32

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Taxes are sources of revenue to the government. They form a substantial part of fund used by her to carry out her functions. These functions include maintenance of law and order, defense against external aggression and provision of infrastructural facilities for setting up new industries, execution of other key projects, such as electricity, pipe borne water, road, hospitals and school etc.
Taxation can be define as a compulsory payment or financial contribution imposed on individual group of persons, corporate bodies and institutions by government and its agent for the purpose of financing its socio-economic functions through the provision of goods and services and provision of public goods and services and to regulate the fiscal policies of its economy.
From the comprehensive definition above, the following features or characteristics of tax emerged they are: the government or its agent, revenue realized is for the benefit of all. And also, there is no amount of services rendered to the tax payer.
Taxation is divided into two types such as direct tax and indirect tax. Direct tax are taxes levied directly on individuals, this form of tax is paid directly on personal income tax, petroleum profit tax, capital transfer tax, capital gain tax etc, while indirect tax are taxes that are imposed on goods and services, it could be a fined amount levied on a commodity per unit or could be add-valorem when the tax imposed is a percentage of commodity. The various forms of direct tax are import duties/tariff, export duties, exercise duties, purchase tax etc.
This study will be focused on a critical analysis of income tax as a source of income tax as a source of revenue in Nigeria.
Statement of the Problem
The government imposed taxes both direct and indirect to aid them in getting revenue to be used in implementing their policies. However, this source is faced with a lot of problems which made reliance on taxation as source of revenue difficult.
It is of utmost importance at this point to note that people do not voluntarily pay taxes unless they are forced. This has resulted in tax evasion which is a deliberate act of avoiding tax yearly.
This problem often leads to the cost of collection becoming more than revenue collected. Taking this point into consideration, it could be seen that taxation has failed to some extent to serve as a source of revenue in Nigeria.
Nigeria as it is, is a developing country where the level of illiteracy is very high especially at the local government level. And for this reason, most people are ignorant of the uses of tax and hence they tend to ignore its payment which make the amount collected becomes less than what is expected. It should also be noted that companies avoid tax by declaring understated profit, thereby paying less than what they should have paid as tax. All these hinder the contribution of taxation as a source of revenue to the government.
Another factors affecting taxation as a source of government revenue is that tax collectors are school certificate holders without any job training and hence lack of training also contributed greatly to the problem of these collections. Other problems are lack of motorable roads, uncommitted and dishonest attitude of tax officials towards the job. And if all these constraints are not reduced to the minimum, taxation may lose its features as one of the major source of revenue to the government.
Objectives of the Study
The objective of the study is to make a thorough analysis on the contribution of taxation as a source of government revenue, a case study of Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State Tax Office.
It is also aimed at carrying the revenue received from taxation for some years back and now see whether the revenue is increasing or decreasing, or whether it remains at or with a stated period.
Furthermore, the study is also aimed at after due analysis to possibly reviewed or bring out the problem facing taxation as a source of generating revenue for government and thereafter recommend possible and eventually help to prevent future occurrence.
In view of the above, it is also aimed at education members of the public on the use, importance and benefit derived from paying tax.
Research Questions
The researcher made her investigations through the use of the following research questions:
a. What are the causes of low motivation among tax payers?
b. What is the attitude of members of the public towards income?
c. To what extent has the government been able to influence the public to embark on more positive ways of making taxation a major source of income?
d. What is the effect of taxation in income contributed to local government building?

Significance of the Study
Indeed, the significance of taxation as a source of generating revenue cannot be overemphasized. The researcher have view this study to be useful to the following: tax payers, government institutions and all those who are concern with the formulations of implementation of tax policy.
The significance of the study becomes meaningful for the following reasons:
a. To make the government aware of the factors which affect the payment of taxes, especially at the local government level.
b. To educate members of the public more on this uses, importance and benefit derived from the payment of taxes.
c. It also influence the government (local) to enable them embark on more positive ways of making taxation a major sources of revenue generating for the government.