LAHORE: The business community has appreciated Chief of Army Staff Gen Asim Munir for having meeting with top businessmen and giving them confidence.

In a statement, LCCI Senior Vice President Chaudhry Zafar Mahmood said that the recent meeting of COAS with business community will help trust building. He said that such meetings should be held on regular basis.

He said that the economic policies should be an important part of the manifesto of the political parties. He said that all the political parties would have to play their role for political and economic stability in the country.

He added that economic growth can speed up provided reservations of business community regarding taxation system are removed, refunds are paid expeditiously, discretionary powers that have opened floodgates of corruption are clipped, agriculture stagnation is reversed and utility prices are reduced.

He said that the role of Federal Board of Revenue should be considered as a key facilitator to private sector. Tax system is complicated and burdensome which creates room for complicities between tax payers and the tax collectors. He said that number of taxes and frequency of paying taxes must be reduced. Moreover, taxes may be paid quarterly instead of every month. For that matter, all Para tariffs must be merged in the main tariffs.

“Similarly, there should be electronic communication between taxpayers and tax departments. These proposals can make noticeable difference and win the confidence of taxpayers,” he added

He suggested that the government should take steps to control smuggling at the borders and Frontier core deployed there should be equipped with state of the art technology and made them more vigilant and to advise them to play their role in controlling the smuggling by exercising their authority under customs Act.

He suggested that the duties on such goods which are prone to smuggling should be reduced as it has been practiced successfully in many other countries. He also called for reduction in duties and taxes on raw materials.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023