MIRPUR KHAS: ARTS Foundation, Tax Justice Coalition Pakistan and Indus Consortium organised a public forum on “Public Manifesto on Tax Reforms” in the Mirpurkhas Press Club on Wednesday.
Shahzado Malik from ARTS Foundation, Masood Wassan from Tabdeeli Passand Party, Kak UC Chairman Rafique Leghari, Anwar Azad from SPO, Devi Mahraj from ARTS Foundation, Radha Bheel from RADHA organisation, Sher Muhammad Solangi from RSDO, and others from the civil society participated in the public forum. ARTS Foundation distributed the public manifesto copies to all the participants of the public forum.
Shahzado Malik, ARTS Foundation Executive Director, said, “Out of 64000 companies, only 37 per cent pay the tax in Pakistan. In Pakistan, the rich getting richer because of concentration of wealth (mainly due to very poor and regressive taxation system), more children in poverty, poor health system which is way below international standards, with the same schools and schooling system, remotest possible social care and increasing youth unemployment.”
“Tax to GDP ratio 13.1 per cent one of the lowest in the world with 91 per cent of tax revenue collected through indirect (65 per cent) advance and other presumptive (26 per cent) taxes in Pakistan and this is due to the exemptions from Income, Sales tax and custom duties granted to the rich and powerful of the country. This highly unjust tax system has shifted the tax burden from income earners to citizen violating the central tenet of an equitable taxation,” he added.
Masood Wassan said, “In Pakistan, poor people pay more tax but rich people pay less tax, the state should provide basic facilities for the tax collection in Pakistan.”
Sher Muhammad Solangi from RSDO said, “The election 2018 provides great window for the political parties of Pakistan to inculcate in their manifestos, provision for change in the articles to consider food as human right without any prejudice of revenue availability at one hand and at the same time to consider taking measures to curb concentration of wealth.”
On the occasion, Anwar Azad, Abdullah Saraz, Radha Bheel and others also addressed the participants.