Federal Minister for Information Qamar Zaman Kaira said on Friday that it was strange that the Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif supported the draft bill for reformation of General Sales Tax but his party in the National Assembly was opposing it.
He was speaking to media persons during his visit to photo exhibition on the life of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto at Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA).
Kaira said that "during the recent meeting of Council of Common Interest (CCI), the Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif supported the draft bill for legislation on implementation of reformed GST, but his party in the National Assembly was opposing it". He said that the government has held consultations with the provincial governments, and the impression given by some elements that the bill was being bulldozed was not correct. "The bill tabled in National Assembly would go to the concerned standing committees and after thorough discussions there it will be brought in the House for voting and only after passage from the Parliament it will be implemented", Kaira added.
He clarified that after approval of RGST bill, a unified ratio of 15 per cent GST will be imposed on all items, as against to the present ratio of 15 per cent to 25 per cent providing relief to the common man.
About Flood Relief Surcharge, he said that impression is being given that 10 per cent additional tax was being imposed, but the fact was that persons earning more than Rs 300,000 will have to pay 10 per cent of the tax money they are already paying and this will be only for six months time.
The minister said that the government has to pool additional funds for provision of second tranche of cash aid to flood victims, as Rs 160 billion are needed for reconstruction of destroyed houses.
Kaira said that the provinces have said that they do not have resources to pay compensation to the flood victims, but the Federal Government was fully committed to pay the compensation to the victims. He said that additional one per cent excise duty was being imposed only on luxury items like cigarettes and cosmetic items.
About the historic photo exhibition of the pictures of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, he said that it was great effort on the part of Agha Feroze, personal photographer of Begum Nusrat Bhutto, and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.He said that Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has unique history as its workers and leaders all have sacrificed their life for the cause of democracy.
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