The Abuja Municipal Area Council has announced the abolition of cash payments for all council taxes and revenues as it moves to fully automate its revenue collection system in a bid to curb fraud and block leakages.
The Chairman of the council, Christopher Zakka Maikalangu, disclosed this on Tuesday at a press conference in Abuja, saying the new policy would take effect from January 1, 2026.
Maikalangu said the decision was aimed at sanitising the council’s revenue system, which he noted had been undermined for years by unauthorised collectors, fake demand notices and revenue diversion.
“This is a decisive step to stop revenue diversion and unauthorised collections,” he said. “From January 1, nobody should pay any tax or revenue to individuals or in cash. All payments must follow the new system.”
The AMAC chairman disclosed that the council had generated over ₦5bn in revenue since January but said the figure fell short of expectations considering the scale of economic activities and development within the area council.
“Look at AMAC today—hotels, banks, estates and houses everywhere,” he said. “With all these developments, the chairman should be seeing money, but the money is not there. That is the problem we are addressing.”
Maikalangu attributed the revenue shortfall to widespread fraud, explaining that individuals impersonating council officials had been issuing fake demand notices and presenting unauthorised accounts to taxpayers.
“Criminals have been using AMAC’s name to collect money from residents,” he said. “We have arrested and prosecuted some of them before, but arrests alone are not enough. We must eliminate the system that allows them to keep stealing AMAC revenue.”
Explaining how the new system would work, he said taxpayers would be required to select their location and revenue item, make payments digitally and generate receipts instantly, which would be verified by enforcement teams during routine checks.
“When our task force comes, all you need to do is present the receipt you generated,” he said. “Once you have paid correctly, you are covered.”
The chairman warned residents and business owners against giving money to anyone demanding cash, stressing that such persons were criminals and not authorised by the council.
“Henceforth, anybody who comes to you asking for cash is not from AMAC,” he said. “Don’t be afraid of them. Walk away and report them to the appropriate authorities.”
Maikalangu said special provisions had been made for market women and residents without bank accounts, noting that payments could still be made through banks, POS operators or mobile banking applications under the automated system.
“Our market women are not excluded,” he said. “They can go to a bank or POS to make payments. AMAC is not a village—there is network everywhere, and there is no excuse.”
He also cautioned residents and business owners against responding to demand notices issued before 2026, warning that only notices issued by the council under the new system would be recognised.
“If you pay wrongly, you will pay twice,” he said. “Any demand notice that does not come from the council under this arrangement should be ignored.”
The chairman added that enforcement measures had been strengthened, including the deployment of task forces, security agencies and a mobile court, with defaulters facing prosecution or the sealing of their premises.
Maikalangu acknowledged resistance from vested interests opposed to the reforms but insisted that the automation policy must succeed.
“This system must work,” he said. “We cannot continue like this. It is the only way to eliminate criminals and ensure that AMAC gets its rightful revenue.”
