KARACHI: Businessmen Group (BMG) chairman and former president of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) M. Zubair Motiwala has said that the pending Income Tax Refund Claims of small traders, shopkeepers and the SMEs must be calculated out of turn, and the claims of around Rs50,000 to Rs100,000, whose assessment has been completed, should be released on top priority.

"Blocking such refunds oppresses small businesses which continue to face serious cash flow problems. We have no idea how long the COVID-19 pandemic would last, and it is a well-known fact that almost every household is a victim of this pandemic. Therefore, the government will have to provide relief as it is totally uncertain where the businesses will land in the days to come," he added while speaking at a meeting of small traders held at the KCCI.

He said that the government would have to bring in major changes to the taxation system and it also needed to devise effective mechanism to minimize the hardships of small traders since big businesses might survive, but the small ones needed support as they had no access to financing facilities and had lost all their savings while battling with the situation triggered by the pandemic.

He also stressed the need to resolving the CNIC issue which was creating a lot of problems for the already perturbed businessmen who were compelled to run their businesses with limited timings and were strictly advised to comply with all the SOPs for containing the COVID-19 pandemic which had resulted in creating a troublesome situation for the small traders by raising costs and lowering earnings.

In response to concerns over the imposition of municipal tax, he said that KCCI president had already taken up the municipal tax issue and was strictly pursuing the same so that the grievances faced by the small traders could be minimized.

Moreover, the Karachi chamber was also closely monitoring the relocation of displaced shopkeepers whose premises had been razed during the anti-encroachment drive.

"These shopkeepers must be provided with adequate alternative place for business, and we are seriously working on it," he said.

Zubair Motiwala, while recalling his journey with the late Siraj Kassam Teli, said that the vacuum created by the sad demise of Siraj Teli could not be filled by anyone, but he, along with all the vice chairmen of the BMG and the general-secretary, would try their best to come up to the expectations of the business and industrial community.

KCCI president M. Shariq Vohra said that the small traders were the assets of the KCCI, and the chamber fully realized their significance.

KCCI's role was to facilitate and support the business community in dealing with numerous government-related matters and pave way for progress and prosperity of the small traders.

"This is our job, and we will remain unshakable until numerous issues are amicably resolved," he added.