By: Momodou Justice Darboe
The stately Jamaa Hall of the exquisite Kairaba Beach Hotel will tomorrow be the venue for the 6th Edition of GRA Tax Award Night.
The Gambian leader Adama Barrow will be among a dazzling array of high-profile guests, who will grace the colorful event with their presence.
The GRA under the visionary leadership of Commissioner General Mr. Yankuba Darboe initiated the taxpayer award night to recognize and appreciate compliance of tax obligations.
Since its inception five years ago, the initiative has been growing in popularity and significance as many taxpayers continue to strive for a place in history by receiving one or another of GRA’s covetous awards for tax compliance.
Last year, Africell emerged as the highest tax-paying company and as a result, the cellular company’s boss was given the rare opportunity to be in close quarters with the Gambian leader during the awards night by sharing the same table.
At the time of writing this article, this medium could not establish who or which company rep. would be sitting cheek-by-jowl with the President this award night but Commissioner General Yankuba Darboe said last year that any individual, who is desirous of grabbing the rare opportunity of sharing the table with the Gambian leader on Saturday must be prepared to pay more tax than the rest.
The award ceremony will be coordinated by a special committee at the GRA to be headed by Matty Njie-Senghore and it’s expected to be attended by over 500 people from various sectors, including cabinet ministers. His Excellency President Adama Barrow will preside over the historic event.
The thinking behind the ceremony is to give the most tax-compliant companies awards as a sign of motivation and appreciation. The event is very important as it acknowledges the contribution of the business community in the mobilization of revenues required for development.
As part of the global and corporate best practice, GRA has introduced this important culture to annually recognize, celebrate and reward the efforts of its loyal and compliant taxpayers’ contributions to the economy.
“This day is ideally placed at the beginning of the financial year of the government to appreciate our distinguished taxpayers, who are working very hard, to liberate our country from external resource dependency. Therefore, the mobilization of domestic resources is crucial for the funding of our own budget and our own priorities to spur our own economic growth and development,” said the GRA