Threat to the economy: KPCCI leader speaks up on behalf of traders

PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KPCCI) asked the Centre to resolve the issues of the imposition of withholding tax and devise an acceptable solution. 

“Traders in the country are in a situation of uncertainty,” a press release issued on Monday quoted KPCCI President Zulfiqar Ali Khan as saying.

“The economy of the country, especially that of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, is weak, and the protest of traders is weakening it further,” he added.

Small-scale traders of  the province have already given October 10 as a deadline to renew their protests against the withholding tax.

The federal government imposed a withholding tax of 0.3% on transactions of more than Rs50, 000 from banks, which has been rejected by traders across the country.

“A delegation from the Federal Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FCCI), under the leadership of Senator Ilyas Bilour, is in dialogue with the federal government,” said the KPCCI president.

He is hopeful the federal finance minister will announce a solution soon.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 6^th, 2015.