New head for Directory of Taxation Authorities

TIRANA, Jan.21- The new head of the General Directory of Taxation is Arben Sefgjini, who replace Gerta Picari, who was, herself, appointed only six month ago. Sefgjini had been in the state secret intelligence service during 1992-1997 and has been tried for the kidnapping of Albanian-Macedonian citizen Remzi Hoxha, but found innocent. Picari has been removed as head of the General Directory of Taxation because of low levels of tax revenue collections, according to officials. In data made public by the Finance Ministry for the first eleven months of 2007, the real revenue level is at 96.8 percent of the set target, or $82 million less than expected.
In the last two years, the head of the Taxation Authorities has been changed twice and experts believe that this is due to the pressure that exists for collecting higher revenues from taxation.