Annual report 2012: FTO resolved 94% complaints in 2012

Shoaib Suddle says Rs9.79b were refunded to taxpayers.

ISLAMABAD:

The office of the Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) in its annual report for the year 2012 released on Thursday observed that it has been resolving the complaints of taxpayers against tax collectors with commendable speed.

Although maladministration and bad governance has taken roots in various departments of the government, “FTO has emerged as a role model institution in improving good governance in Pakistan,” said a brief overview of report that summarised the annual performance of Ombudsman’s office.

“FTO decided 1,597 of 1,689 fresh complaints last year,” FTO Dr Shoaib Suddle said in a press briefing.

Acting on complaints of wrongful taxation the FTO got refunded a sum of Rs9.79 billion from taxation departments to the taxpayers as compared to Rs7.89 billion during 2011, he added.

Giving a breakdown of complaints resolved against the taxation departments he said some 883 (52.28%) pertained to income tax, 517 (30.61%) to sales tax, 269 (15.93%) to customs, 17 (1.00%) to federal excise and three (0.18%) were regarding Freedom of Information Ordinance, 2002.

As many as 1,430 (85.66%) fresh complaints and 167 complaints pending from 2011 were decided by 31st December 2012, making a total of 1,597 complaints decided in 2012, he explained.

Suddle told reporters that of the 1,597 decided complaints, 1,414 (86.5%) ended up in favour of taxpayers. Significantly, the taxpayers’ grievances in as many as 493 complaints decided during 2012 were redressed during the investigation phase.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15^th, 2013.