The Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) office has launched a video campaign to create awareness about the programme, promote voluntary tax compliance and boost tax education among Nigerians.
This was disclosed in a press statement by the VAIDS Office in the Federal Ministry of Finance, the initiator of the programme.
According to the statement, the campaign, domiciled on YouTube, features short videos and skits depicting various scenarios of persons attempting to evade their taxes.
By its provision, VAIDS gives tax defaulters a time-limited opportunity to regularize their tax affairs by truthfully declaring and paying tax liabilities.
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VAIDS was conceived by the Federal Ministry of Finance in collaboration with federal and state tax authorities to correct the defective tax orientation in the country and reflects the desire of the Federal Government to widen the tax net while offering benefits to defaulters, who voluntarily and truthfully declare their assets and pay tax liabilities.
Benefits accruable to individuals and corporate bodies, who comply with VAIDS, include immunity from prosecution for tax offences, tax audits, as well as waivers of interest and penalties on unpaid taxes.
They also include the option of spreading outstanding liabilities over a maximum period of three years as may be agree with the relevant tax authority.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
