Actress Nuhamin and Engdasew Teddy

Actress and model Nuhamin with Tedy engdasew.\Update

There are groups of vehicle importers who are voicing their complaints. “When we approach the federal government, I didn’t bring this issue up,” said one importer.

“The Ministry does not have the authority to order the states to do this or that,” stated the Ministry of Revenue.

It should be noted that vehicle importers in Addis Ababa have expressed their concerns to Tikvah Ethiopia regarding excessive tax demands from the Addis Ababa City Revenue Bureau.

The importers stated, “The Addis Ababa Revenue Bureau has issued new instructions and is asking us for taxes beyond our means.”

Mr. Biniam Mkhru, head of the Addis Ababa Revenue Bureau, responded that the directive was issued to prevent tax evasion and that it is within the office's mandate to do so.

He explained, “It is confirmed that tax evasion is real, and the price of the cars sold is not being cut.”

For their part, the importers said, “Some individuals are filing this complaint as a group.” They urged the Ministry of Revenue to address the matter, stating, “When we approach the federal government, they say, ‘I have not brought this matter up.’”

For example, if an importer from Addis Ababa and a regional importer bring and sell the same car, the new importer pays 45% tax, while the old one pays only 5%. “This is a significant difference,” they implored the ministry to consider.

Stating that importers are bringing the same vehicle, yet facing different tax rates compared to those outside Addis Ababa, Tikvah Ethiopia has requested an explanation from the ministry.

The vehicle importers questioned, “How can there be different payments for the same product?” Meanwhile, the Bureau reiterated its directive to prevent tax evasion, asserting that it has the authority to do so. They also inquired whether this mandate had indeed been granted to the Bureau.

What is the ministry's response?

One official from the ministry promised the following:

“It is the constitution that defines the authority of the state and the ministry. I was not aware of the instructions they mentioned. The direct ministry does not have the authority to order the states to act in a specific way.”

“We have a common platform. How are you engaging on that platform? In the federal system, the federal office does not have the authority to direct the regional offices in this manner. We have a forum for discussion. The Regional Support Directorate will engage on this issue to gather their input. Our platform, called 'Fix It,' is available for private discussions.”

“Please provide us with the reference number. We will discuss it with the Regional Support Directorate and engage with Addis Paliwal.”

While regional and city administrations operate independently, it is possible to discuss whether there should be consistency. “We can talk about that—not in the spirit of command and obedience,” he stated.

Tikvah Ethiopia's main complaint is that the tax imposed on importers in Addis Ababa is higher compared to those importing the same vehicle from outside the city. Shouldn’t the tax amount imposed by the ministry be consistent? Shouldn’t Addis Ababa be treated the same? They raised this question.

A representative from the ministry responded to Tikvah Ethiopia, saying, “It is possible to discuss this if they provide us with the instructions.”

After sending the instructions that the importers claimed had been issued in letter form, they replied, “We will go where we need to go. In any case, we will proceed as necessary.”