(CPJ/IFEX) – On 3 June 1998, the Income Tax Department made public an excessive 383% increase in tax assessments on publishers for this fiscal year beginning in June 1998. The tax assessments appear to have been determined arbitrarily without the requisite financial audits. All print media, whether they were operational or not during the 10-month […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – On 3 June 1998, the Income Tax Department made public an
excessive
383% increase in tax assessments on publishers for this fiscal year
beginning in
June 1998. The tax assessments appear to have been determined arbitrarily
without the requisite financial audits. All print media, whether they were
operational or not during the 10-month Armed Forces Revolutionary Council
junta
rule, are being charged based on the assumption that they were publishing
daily
despite the protestations of the affected publishers and editors.
Notice of objections to the taxation procedure can only be registered after
half
of the assessed tax is paid. The Sierra Leone Association of Journalists
(SLAJ)
has registered a complaint with the Minister of Finance.
