Daily Times

For improvement in financial health of the country and betterment of tax collection, exemplary punishments should be awarded to tax evaders and their helpers by checking tax evasion.

President Business Forum Multan Chapter, Saleha Hassan, in an interview with APP on Sunday stated that people who pay taxes expect facilitation in return besides money collected from them could be spent on welfare of the country.

She suggested that the government should impose ban on imported cosmetics and promote locally manufactured beauty products to save foreign exchange which would help strengthening the economy.

“Pakistan-made cosmetics are equally good for women and they should avoid buying imported items. Our country does not need parlors, rather it needs qualified teachers”, she remarked.

Replying to a question, the women entrepreneur noted that the government should make a law under which industrial entrepreneurs should be asked to contribute up to 40 percent of their income to health and education sectors of the country for its progress and prosperity. Land reforms and taxation on agriculture will also be helpful in strengthening the economy, she added.

She appreciated the government’s initiative of launching crackdown on smugglers which resulted in weakening of dollar against Pakistani rupee and seizing of Iranian diesel.

Answering to another question, Saleha Hassan, who is also member of Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the government should extend subsidy on solar energy on three to four percent mark up to masses to cut energy usage as public is much worried about inflated electricity bills.

Masses will switch over to solar energy and the demand of electricity will also reduce in the country by taking this step, she hoped.

Regarding education system, Saleha Hassan supported the privatization of public sector schools to improve the standard of education adding that after privatization, student should be imparted education on cheap fee structure because parents are winning bread and butter for their families with great difficulty in these troubled times when inflation is sky rocketing.

The President Business Forum urged the government to increase education budget for improving its standard as it is fact that the deeper the well, the warmer will be the water.

She advocated vocational education and added that they had offered free of charge training to TEVTA students at her vehicular showroom wherein highly qualified and well trained staffers were available to train them.

However, she regretted that local administration of the Authority refused the offer on one pretext or the other.

The President Business Forum explained that they would make a team of dedicated people to discuss the concerns of all formal and informal associations to address their common problems.

“With the help of local administration, we will act for check and balance on profiteering.” she said.

To a question, she stated that being Commissioner Girls Guide, she always tried to boost the confidence level of girls and teach them how to handle challenges of life in days to come.

She lamented that these days, parents avoid sending their daughters for girls guide training because Gulshan Abad, an area of drug peddlars is located near its office and drug users sit in front of it near historic Langhay Khan Bagh.

Answering another question, South Punjab women car dealer explained that govt should promote electric cars to minimize consumption of petrol for which it should make electric zone and at least a few pumps in every city should have facility to charge the cars.

She explained that automobiles industry was contributing 4 percent of GDP and its sales plunged in past months owing to not opening of LCs and raising in cost of production as we are assemblers not manufacturers.

Pakistan should close its economy for a certain period, Saleha Hassan said and added that our country was the best in the world in cotton finishing products.