No matter which political party or, say, non-civil setup happens to be at the helm of affairs in Pakistan, middle and lower classes have never really featured prominently on the list of priorities. Had the leaders considered all citizens equal, everyone would have been made to pay taxes directly proportionate to income regardless of the means of income.
Why should a retailer earning a net annual income of, say, a couple of million rupees pays nothing, but a salaried person earning that much has to pay Rs150,000 in direct tax? The same question applies to agriculturists, industrialists, real estate developers and others like them.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stressed more than once that Pakistan needs to tax the rich, widen the net, levy direct taxation on all who earn above a declared threshold. But such suggestions continue to fall on deaf Pakistani ears. The IMF advised the government to give subsidies only to the poor. Yet, despite all the pre-budget talk, the burden has disproportionately been placed on those who are already within the net.
All over the world, citizens pay taxes and obey laws because of the fear of fine or punishment. A government that lacks the political will to enforce payment of taxes by all sectors has no right to rule.
The IMF has asked the Pakistani government to increase revenues through direct taxation. It is the government that has decided to protect its own favourites from taxation, rely on indirect taxation and increase the burden on the salaried class. Unfortunately, this has been the running thread among governments in Pakistan. That being so, what is the point of blaming the IMF or any other lender?
MALIK TARIQ ALI
LAHORE
