The Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, has apologised to the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, over its Easter message.
Recall that in its message for Easter in March 32, the FIRS wrote: “Jesus paid your debt, not your taxes”, a statement that sparked condemnation by the Christian association.
While describing the message as “offensive and derogatory to the Christian faith”, the CAN, therefore, demanded an apology from the agency.
Responding, the FIRS, in a statement on Tuesday by its special adviser, Dare Adekanmbi, said as a responsible agency of government, the service did not put out the flier purposely to denigrate Jesus Christ.
The statement said: “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.”
According to the agency, the unintended meaning being read into the post was not what “we were out to communicate as an agency”.
“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,” the statement noted.
“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.”
