Tanzania: Online Auctions By TRA Bears Fruits On Kick Off

Tanzania Revenue Authority commissioner general, Dr Edwin Mhede 

By Alex Malanga & Godfrey Kahango

Dar es Salaam — The use of Customs Online Auction to auction the abandoned products whose

owners have failed to pay custom duty has started to yield fruits.

The taxman's commissioner general, Dr Edwin Mhede, said yesterday that the sum of tax recovered stood at Sh1.4 billion last month compared to below Sh1 billion before the launch of the online system.

He was speaking during the taxpayer's education meeting with traders held in Mbeya Region.

"We can now feel it (Customs Online Auction). Revenues have gone up, red tape has been cut and congestion at the Dar es Salaam Port has been reduced," noted Dr Mhede.

He said the kind of auction allowed bidding at any time, unlike earlier procedures of holding public custom auctions once per week.

What one needs to have access to the online auction is a smart phone or any electronic device and log on to the TRA website which directs the bidder to the auction.

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"The target for Custom Online Auction is not revenue collection, but rather recovering of revenue that the government could lose to the abandoned consignments," noted Dr Mhede.

Mbeya Regional Commissioner Albert Chalamila called on TRA to get rid of Electronic Fiscal Devices (EFDs) distribution agents on the ground that they were involving in sabotaging the government's revenue.

"They don't provide services on time. I spent three months following up on EFDs for my businesses located in Iringa Region, but to no avail," said Mr Chalamila.

Surprisingly, he added, after the TRA manager for Iringa Region intervened, it took him less than a week to get the same.

Speaking earlier, TRA manager for Mbeya Region Eunice Liheluka said during the first six months of the 2019/20 financial year, they collected some Sh31 billion in tax revenue compared to a target of Sh37 billion.

The target for the whole year stood at Sh75.5 billion.

The first half of the year suggests that the taxman in Mbeya region was collecting an average of Sh5.16 billion on the monthly basis.

TRA thus remains with the daunting tax of collecting the remaining Sh44.5 billion or Sh7.41 billion per month if they are to beat the target.

"We have every reason to congratulate ourselves. But we have a responsibility to do all in our power to ensure we meet the target," noted Ms Liheluka.