News

FIRS Apologises to CAN, Christians Over Controversial Easter Message

 

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has issued an apology to Christians following a controversial Easter message that sparked outrage among adherents of the faith.

In its Easter message directed at Christians in Nigeria, FIRS shared a flier featuring a Point of Sales (PoS) machine accompanied by the caption, “Jesus paid your debt, not your taxes.”

The message quickly elicited condemnation, with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) at the forefront, demanding an apology for what they deemed insensitive messaging.

Although the post was subsequently deleted, FIRS has now formally apologised for the offense caused.

“We wish to offer our unreserved apologies for this misinterpretation,” stated the agency in a statement released late Tuesday by the Special Adviser (Media) to the FIRS Chairman, Dare Adekanmbi.

The apology comes amid ongoing discussions surrounding the appropriate tone and messaging in public communications, especially during religious holidays.

 

 

 

READ THE FULL STATEMENT BELOW

We Will Never Denigrate Jesus Christ—-FIRS

Our attention has been drawn to a statement by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) about a flier posted on our social media platforms with the headline “Jesus paid your debts, not your taxes.” As a responsible agency of government, we would like to say we did not put out the flier purposively to denigrate Jesus Christ or detract from the huge sacrifice He made for humanity. We are acutely aware that the essence of the Easter period is to celebrate this huge sacrifice.

The message was our way of uniquely engaging taxpayers and to remind them of the need to prioritise payment of their taxes as a civic obligation. Yes, we would say the message ruffled feathers in some circles. The unintended meaning/insinuation being read into the post was not what we were out to communicate as an agency. Good a thing, this much is acknowledged by CAN in its statement wherein it said “We recognise that the intended message may have been to creatively engage taxpayers…” We wish to offer our unreserved apologies for this misinterpretation.

 

FIRS, as a responsible agency, has no religion and will not bring down any religion or offend the sensibilities of adherents of various faiths in the country. Our goal is to assess, collect and account for revenue for the wellbeing of the Federation. We believe it is an investment in the progress of the country when citizens pay their taxes. Once again, we wish to apologise to CAN and Christians who felt offended at the unintended consequence of our message on Easter Sunday.

Signed

Dare ADEKANMBI

Special Adviser (Media) to the FIRS chairman

admin

Recent Posts

Ford Trims Workforce: 4,000 Jobs to Go in Europe

US car giant Ford on Wednesday announced 4,000 more job cuts in Europe, mostly in…

1 day ago

Tinubu Dissolves UNIZIK Council, Sacks VC, Registrar, Otukpo Pro-Chancellor

  President Bola Tinubu has approved the dissolution of the Governing Council of Nnamdi Azikiwe…

1 day ago

Ekiti Workers to Earn N70,000 Minimum Wage as Govt Signs MoU with Unions

  The Ekiti State Government has reached an agreement with labour leaders in the state,…

2 days ago

N610bn Constituency Projects Under ICPC Scrutiny in 21 States, FCT

  The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has initiated the seventh…

2 days ago

Iraq Undertakes Historic Census After 40-Year Gap

Iraq is holding its first nationwide census in nearly four decades this week, a long-awaited…

2 days ago

Relief as Rep ‘Lafi’ Empowers 300 Constituents Through Skill Acquisition Programme

  Over 300 constituents of Akinyele/Lagelu Federal Constituency in Oyo State benefitted from a skill…

3 days ago