ISLAMABAD: The marathon meetings between the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and its three coalition partners – the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Jamiat-Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) and Awami National Party (ANP) – failed to make any headway over support for the controversial reformed General Sales Tax (RGST) Bill.
Although President Asif Ali Zardari held a crucial meeting with ANP President Asfandyar Wali to win his party’s support for the bill, no progress could be made. Minister for Finance Abdul Hafeez Shaikh also made an effort to convince the ANP leaders, but he too failed.
The meeting continued late into the night without any significant headway, and it is expected that the parleys would continue on Friday. The MQM-government meeting also ended without a result, with both sides sticking to their positions.
The MQM insists on imposition of agriculture tax and withdrawal of taxes on daily-use items, but the government first wants backing for the GST bill and the levy of the agriculture tax later. A source told Pakistan Today that the MQM negotiators gave a tough time to the financial wizards of the government led by the finance minister and they had to return to Islamabad “empty handed”.
The source said the government team assured the MQM negotiators of imposing agriculture tax with an approval from the provinces in six month’s time, however, the MQM team expressed a lack of trust and told the officials that the PPP had a “habit of making false commitments to its coalition partners”.
MQM leader Senator Babar Ghauri said the ball was in the government’s court vis-a-vis the GST bill. “We asked them to impose agriculture tax on landlords and feudal class in order to expand the tax net. We also asked them to avoid duplication of taxes and review their strategy, which is flawed,” he said.
JUI-F leader Senator Azam Swati said his party had decided to oppose the GST bill and it would not, in any way, change its mind. “The decision is final and we do not want to negotiate with the government,” he added.
