SHAFAQNA PAKISTAN (Shia News Agency)
Pakistan is a poor country that is running on IMF loan and aid from the donor countries. About three hundred Pakistanis have so much wealth that they can pay off Pakistan’s entire loan, despite Pakistan is famous for its begging bowl. The loan and the interest which is taken from IMF is finally paid by squeezing the poor through increasing GST. The government never dared to touch the billionaire influential who is evading tax of millions every year. Nearly 70% of Pakistan’s politicians, including some of the country’s wealthiest people, did not file tax returns last year, according to a report that shines a light on a longstanding problem that reaches to the top of society. Tax dodging is rife among Pakistan’s 180 million population; just 2% are registered within the tax system but fewer actually pay it. Critics say the rich and powerful are some of the worst offenders and are effectively subsidised by the poor. It has been reported that only one in every 200 Pakistani citizens files tax on their income. Statutory Regulatory Orders (SROs), which grant exemptions and concessions on taxes, are still very much part of our financial system despite their being a cutting down on some of them at the insistence of the IMF. These SROs are detrimental to the economic system as they grant tax exemptions in industry, commerce and agriculture, mostly benefiting those in the ruling elite. Who stands to gain? The ruling elite of course, which finds itself merrily distanced from the burden of having to pay vital taxation. The IMF recognises this sorry state of affairs and has been on our case to resolve it. It is time for the government to treat all classes of taxpayers fairly and equitably, irrespective of the sector they are in or the source of their income and their status in the society. Unpopular tax reforms are needed to achieve documentation, which would generate tax revenue and thus minimise our reliance on foreign donors.
pakistan.shafaqna.com
