An Akure High Court has ordered the Federal Polytechnic, Ile-Oluji to pay about N11.5m as outstanding tax liabilities to the Ondo State Board of Internal Revenue (BIR).

In his ruling, the Presiding Judge, Justice W. A. Akintoroye, described the claimant, Ondo State BIR as the rightful authority to assess and collect tax from the institution.

‘I am of the view that there is no good reason why this court should not grant the petition since the respondents have no good defence to the claim’, Akintoroye said.

‘It is hereby ordered in favour of the Petitioner the payment of the balance of Eleven Million, Four Hundred and Eighteen Thousand, Six Hundred and Fifty-Three Naira, Eighteen Kobo (N11,418,653.18k) being the total sum of outstanding tax liabilities due for Pay As You Earn, (PAYE), Development Levy and Withholding Tax covering the period of 2015 to 2017’ he added.

The Ondo State Board of Internal Revenue had dragged the Federal Polytechnic, Ile-Oluji to court after its efforts to collect the said tax failed.

On his part, the defendant was of the opinion that it had to rely on the tax template operating in other federal institutions which is being challenged in the suit.