Every time you travel in your car or use public transport for commuting, you ride on roads, bridges and highways, which are made and maintained by the government. You study for a nominal fee at government (financed) colleges or universities against the high fees of private universities. Needy women are given monthly stipends by the government through income support programmes. These projects are financed by the government through our taxes. Taxes are paid by the rich and middle classes to develop the infrastructure of this country. Pakistan, however, has been in the grip of a taxation crisis since its inception. The country lacks a tax culture. That is why only 0.3 percent of the total population pays direct taxes in Pakistan, which makes Pakistan’s tax to GDP ratio only 9.45 percent, one of the lowest in the region. The government earns 55 percent of its tax revenue through indirect taxes. Forty-five percent taxes are collected through direct taxes, 70 percent of which is in the form of withholding tax. This ratio is uneven. While indirect taxes affect the expenditure capacity of everyone, including the poor, direct taxes is taken only from the rich and middle class, and is used for general welfare and human development projects. As a result of low tax collection, the state funds development and infrastructure projects through debt financing. Consequently, the major chunk of state revenue is spent on paying these debts with costly interests levied by donors. The tax net in Pakistan is very small but the present government has taken some positive steps to broaden it. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has started a campaign to promote the tax culture in Pakistan. It has announced various incentives for taxpayers; one of them is concession for filers of income tax in paying registration, transfers and token fees of motor vehicles. Also, the FBR is considering a proposal that for those traders and industrialists who disclose their hidden income, a low tax rate will be applied on them. The major step in broadening of the tax net is the announcement of withholding tax on bank transactions above Rs 50,000 for non-filers of income tax. The trade unions have been protesting this move for the past few weeks, as a majority of them are non-filers. By enforcement of the withholding tax they either have to pay tax on bank transactions or become filers of income tax. After becoming filers they have to pay regular taxes, which they are not paying presently. So, the strikes of trade unions are only for the purpose of tax avoidance. Sadly, some opposition parties are supporting the strikes of trade unions for petty political gains. Instead, opposition political parties should support the stance of the government, as the traders have no legs to stand on. However, more efforts on behalf of the government are needed to promote a tax culture in Pakistan. The FBR should be made an autonomous organisation, free from political clutches. The mal-administration of the FBR should be corrected in order to make it taxpayer friendly. The FBR was called one of the most corrupt departments in Pakistan by Transparency International. A strict accountability mechanism should be enacted for the FBR to check the corrupt practices of its officials. Optimum tax rates should be levied and everyone should be taxed according to his/her capacity and ability to pay tax. The FBR should pay the due refunds to taxpayers, which are dilly-dallied by its officials. One other important demand is the establishment of tax courts in Pakistan. There are no tax courts here. The first and second appellant forum for the aggrieved taxpayer is commissioner/collector appeals run by officials of the FBR. The second appeals lies before the tribunal whose members are also appointed by the FBR. So, actually the aggrieved taxpayer has to seek relief against the FBR through FBR officials. That is why tax courts should be established free from the control of executive. More importantly, public trust in taxation system of Pakistan should be established. Transparency should be ensured, which can only happen if everyone is taxed fairly and justly. The public should be guaranteed that taxes are public money that will be used for their welfare: for better educational systems, standard health facilities, building roads and dams etc. Development requires money and money comes from taxes. There is also a public responsibility. People should understand that the reason behind heavy, indirect taxes is the non-payment of legitimate direct taxes. This forces the government to levy indirect taxes, the burden of which is shared by everyone, e.g. increasing taxes on fuel and electricity. If everyone starts paying due taxes regularly, it will increase the revenues of the state. With an increase in revenue, the government will be able to invest more in education, health and development schemes. More dams can be built to prevent floods and to end the power crisis. The internal security apparatus of the country can be improved by enhancing the capabilities of law enforcing organisations. The writer is a lawyer based in Islamabad