Shefa smoothens road to Beverly Hills

Bus drivers should not be concerned with driving to Beverly Hills because Shefa Provincial Government Council has hired the services of Ifira General Services to smoothen the road for the benefit of the residents that live up there.

Residents of Beverly Hills consist of ni Vanuatu professionals as well as expatriate heads of private companies who love the privacy, open space and clean air at the bottom of the hill, as well as on the road that snakes its way up the hill heading towards Monmartre.

Shefa Province’s Secretary General Michel Kalworai says the maintenance of the road confirms the Provincial Government’s gratitude to its clients and confidence of a closer working relationship with the Council.

The SG explains, “Maintaining the road and carrying out garbage collection at Beverly Hills is one way to give back to the community for its contributions to the Council’s revenue by way of responding positively to the invoices sent by the Property and Business Tax Office when tax collection is due”.

Law Enforcement Officer Willie Kalo speaks highly of the Beverly Hills Community Association saying, “They are well organized and cooperate well with Shefa Provincial Government Council. For example, in the current Cyclone Pam relief effort, their committee arrives with their list of people in need and we provide them with food and whatever they need and they deliver the supplies themselves to their people. They have built this trust with Shefa and we trust them”, he says.

Shefa looks forward to a closer working relationship with the community.

Business License is paid once a year while Property Tax is paid quarterly to allow low income earners to pay in installments. A Building Permit is paid when an individual decides to build a house or property.

Meanwhile the Accounting Office says revenue collection from business license alone covering Beverly Hills, Club Hippique and Erakor area stands at 30% and more improvement is needed.

Some businesses refuse to pay tax saying there is no benefit as the roads are not well kept but Kalo says, “We are not friends with the weather when road repairs are damaged by the rains, but we must continue to maintain our roads. Our clients are mandated by law to pay for their licenses and we are striving to improve our services to the communities”.