FPCCI says tax procedure core concern

Chambers keen on bringing govt to negotiating table to find solution

FAISALABAD: Finance minister, commerce minister, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and representatives of the processing sector will be called to the negotiation table to settle differences regarding the tax system, said Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Senior Vice President Aamir Ata Bajwa.

Addressing a joint meeting of the textile associations of Faisalabad, he said that on one side the government is offering a textile package worth Rs180 billion, while on the other government institutions are damaging the industrial sector.



Bajwa said that if the FBR needs more taxes then it should explore new taxpayers instead of tightening the noose around the necks of existing ones. Despite the finance minister declaring textile sector as zero-rated, the industry is facing a steep decline, which means the government needs to reorganise its taxation system, the FPCCI official added.

He clarified that tax was not the core issue but the procedure through which tax is being extorted from the business community.

“We will not allow any body to create harassment in the garb of 38-A and 40-B of Sales Tax Act 1990.”

Bajwa was optimistic of convincing the government to come to the negotiation table to resolve this issue. Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI) President Muhammad Saeed Sheikh said, “We should give at least a 10- to 15-day notice before launching any protest.”

Published in The Express Tribune, February 1^st, 2017.

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