Black economy and tax losses on March 31, 2019Tackling the twin menaces of black money and tax evasion has always been a challenge and failure in Pakistan. The study, ‘What is hidden, in the hidden economy of Pakistan? Size, causes, issues and implications’, by Ahmed Gulzar, Novaira Junaid and Adnan Haider, shows that corruption and tax evasion are not only causing an expansion […]
Pakistan Day’s resolve on March 24, 2019The Lahore Resolution of March 23, 1940, widely believed to have paved the way for a separate homeland for the Muslims of India on the basis of “two-nation” theory, received a jolt in 1971 when Bengalis claimed separate state-present day Bangladesh. Many historians, academicians and political analysts say that even after existence of seven decades, […]
Taxes for prosperous Pakistan on March 17, 2019“The Laffer Curve, by the way, was not invented by me; it has its origins way back in time. For example, the Muslim philosopher Ibn Khaldun wrote in his fourteenth-century work The Muqaddimah: It should be known that at the beginning of the dynasty, taxation yields a large revenue from small assessments. At the end […]
Fundamental tax reforms on March 12, 2019“If we realise that the FBR cannot be fixed, we will create a new FBR. This is because Pakistan’s survival is linked to it. It’s not about our liking or disliking: if our tax collection authority does not function properly, it could lead to a security risk. No nation that relies on loans can maintain […]
Retrieving billions for the marginalised on March 11, 2019In a meeting chaired by the Federal Minister for Inter Provincial Coordination, Dr. Fehmida Mirza, on October 10, 2018, it was reportedly conveyed that the trans-provincial fund, assets, institutions and the programmes run by Employees Old Age Benefits Institute (EOBI) and Workers Welfare Fund (WWF) were difficult to divide among the provinces and that the […]
Pro-people agenda on March 3, 2019‘As two-thirds of the tax collected is in the form of indirect taxes and one-fourth of the entire amount comes from petroleum and petroleum products at various stages (which is passed on to consumers), the overall incidence is regressive’- Dr. Ishrat Husain, Governing the Ungovernable: Institutional Reforms for Democratic Governance. Dr. Husain, the Advisor to […]
Of ‘true VIPs’ & tax evaders on February 24, 2019The Prime Minister, while speaking at the awards ceremony held for top 150 taxpayers on February 20, 2019, said “The true VIPs of Pakistan are those people who pay the most tax and such citizens should be felicitated and honoured”. He also said there was a need to change the mindset “under which wealth creation […]
IMF, loans & taxes on February 17, 2019In the wake of meeting in Dubai on February 10, 2019 between Prime Minister Imran Khan and Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), there was a mood of jubilation in official and business circles, summed up by the Federal Finance Minister as: “We are close to signing an agreement for economic […]
Revisiting NFC Award on February 10, 2019The 9th National Finance Commission (NFC), in its maiden meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Asad Umar, held in Islamabad on February 6, 2019, discussed besides other issues recommendations for improving the distribution of resources among provinces and smooth communication between the centre and provincial administrations. The last NFC Award of December 2009 is often described […]
Prime Minister on tax base on February 3, 2019The prevailing myth that our tax base is narrow and only one percent of the population pays income tax is totally fallacious-this statement reiterated by the representative of Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) before Senate Standing Committee on January 30, 2019 should be lambasted. He and all members of the Committee conveniently ignored the distinction […]