Delay in house tax relief notification causing unrest

The NWFP government has not yet formally notified exemption from property tax the five-Marla and below residential houses even after lapse of over four months of its announcement. Sources in Excise and Taxation Department attributed the delay in the issuance of notification to the conditionalities of international donors, particularly the World Bank, which were discouraging the announcement of any incentives which affects revenue generation.
The donor agencies had previously expressed reservations over the announcement of exemption to five-Marla houses from property tax as they said that revenue collection was already low and it would further decrease with the said exemption.
Sources said that lack of co-ordination between Excise and Taxation Department and Finance Department another reason for delay in notification.
Various trader bodies had also taken up the issue with the provincial minister for Excise and Taxation, Fazle Rabbani, in a meeting a few days back and the minister had assured them that the notification would be issued within a few days, "but it has not yet been issued," said Sharafat Ali Mubarak, president of Tajir Ittehad, Peshawar.
He said that they had expressed reservation over fixation of flat rates for commercial property and demanded its abolition and categorisation of property according to the value of the area.
He said that the announcement of tax exemption for five-Marla houses was mere eyewash.
Hakim Abdul Waheed, chairmen, excise and taxation committee formed for providing technical support to the concerned minister, said that the government was committed to providing maximum relief to the masses. He said that they had prepared a report in which they had asked the government to immediately issue notification for the said exemption besides taking certain other steps for public convenience.
He said that the government was going to notify the exemption within a couple of days, in spite of any pressure from donors. He said that the concerned departments were devising modalities for it.