Ho, Feb. 5, GNA- The performance of the Volta Region Directorate of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for 2006 stood at 63.8 billion cedis, below the expected target of 111.4 billion cedis.

This is an anti-climax of an otherwise steady improvement in the region's tax performance since 1999 when tax revenue rose from 3.8 billion cedis to 84.3 billion cedis in 2005.

Mr Wheatley Mensah Adjavon, Volta Regional Director of the IRS, said these at an end-of-year get-together for the staff of the Service in Ho, on Friday.

He said apart from the Vehicle Income Tax (VIT) all tax-types performed poorly in all the four-tax districts of the region. Mr Adjavon blamed the development on poor tax payment, said until recently the tax districts lacked operational vehicles. He also said the Hohoe tax district, the largest in the region, spanning 300 kilometres of rough terrain had only one operational vehicle.

Mr Adjavon said "the next most important factor which actually caused a stir on the region's revenue mobilization drive was the apparent low profit declaration by the region's leading tax payer."

He also said poor staffing of the operations department of IRS also worked against revenue mobilization in the region.

Mr Adjavon recommended that the Hohoe tax-district should be split into two to ensure effective tax collection.

He advised the staff "I will urge you all to continue working hard and your efforts would one day be recognized".

Mrs Joyce Amoah-Ntim, Assistant Commissioner in charge of Tax Education and Public Relations of the Service, urged personnel to give good quality service to customers, especially those in the informal sector. She said "We have to bend over backwards and accommodate them and make them feel as kings, customers, first should be our focus for this year".