While expressing deep concern over the deteriorating economic condition of the country and the alarming increase in debt, the central Shoora of the Jamaat e Islami has called upon the government to drastically cut down its expenditure and introduce tax reforms to generate more funds.
LAHORE, Pakistan Point news - 20th Jan, 2018; While expressing deep concern over the deteriorating economic condition of the country and the alarming increase in debt, the central Shoora of the Jamaat e Islami has called upon the government to drastically cut down its expenditure and introduce tax reforms to generate more funds. A resolution adopted by the JI central consultative body deplored that the government was securing more loans to pay off the previous loans while the value of the rupee had been drastically cut and the budget deficit and trade deficit were increasing.
The Shoora also called for making appointments against important posts strictly on merit and making the accountability process transparent and quick. It also demanded building dams to increase water storage capacity in order to overcome water shortage besides taking up the issue of India’s water aggression at the international level. The Shoora stressed that sensitive national assets such as the air ports and the Motor Way should not be placed on lease to secure more loans.
Honest efforts should be made to revive the PIA, Pakistan Steel and such other institutions and these should not be sold out on throw away prices. The Shoora noted that total loan of the country in December 2017 had risen to 24 trillion rupees while the government had sold Sakuk and Euro bonds valuing 2.5 billion Dollars during the last a few days and was still planning to sell more bonds in the world market. It suggested that the tax net should be widened and net income over and above six lakh per annum should be taxed.
The tax rate should be lowered to bring maximum number of people under the tax net and the basic philosophy of the taxation policy should be to tax the wealthy and to spend on the welfare of the low income people. This would require maximum dependence on direct taxes and the system of withholding taxes should be abandoned, it said. The Shoora called for reviewing the free trade agreements with different countries as were running in losses. It also suggested discouraging unnecessary imports and for preparing a national agenda to expand exports. It stressed that all genuine refunds of the exporters should be immediately released. It also called for introducing modern techniques in agriculture to raise farm produce as could help increase exports.
