ISLAMABAD, June 25 (NNI): Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman and former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has demanded the government to abolish the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and authorize the provinces to collect sales tax at the provincial level.
Taking part in the budget debate in the National Assembly on Tuesday, Bilawal blasted the NAB for engineering cases to defame political figures.
Bilawal declared that the NAB and the economy cannot co-exist, as businessmen fear this institution and relocate their businesses and investments abroad.
Suggesting a Charter of Economy as a solution to Pakistan’s long-standing problems, Bilawal demanded the federal government that the provinces be given the authority to collect sales tax on goods.
He suggested that if the provinces do not achieve the revenue target on the head of sales tax, they will meet the target from their own budgets. He added that the provinces should retain the amount of sales tax if they collect surplus revenue from sales tax at the provincial level.
Bilawal said the government claims that the burden of taxes will not fall on the common man, but in this budget, 70 to 80 per cent of indirect taxes have been imposed and the burden of it has to be borne by the common man.
He emphasized that the problem for the people is not who will go to jail and who will not, but the rising inflation and unemployment. Bilawal proposed that the solution to Pakistan’s long-standing problems is the Charter of Economy, which cannot be dictated from anywhere. He said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif spoke about the Charter of Economy, and in his opinion too problems cannot be solved without it.
He noted that the government was formed under an agreement between his party, the PPP and the Nawaz League, and the PSDP should have been formed with mutual consultation under this agreement. He said, the PM and the Finance Minister are advised that there should have been consultation with the allies in this regard.
Bilawal acknowledged that inflation is coming down and expressed hope that this government policy will continue. He expressed hopes that the PM and his team will be successful in getting Pakistan out of its difficulties. He also suggested that it would have been better if other parties were consulted before the budget and emphasized the need for dialogue between those sitting on the government and opposition benches.
Bilawal suggested that the government invest heavily in agriculture, pointing out that India gives subsidies worth billions of rupees to its farmers. He said if Pakistan supports its farmers even half as much, it can compete effectively. He noted that farmers have suffered due to the caretaker government’s decisions.
He suggested that all provinces should be included in the sales tax on services, praising the commendable performance of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan in that regard, which had even surpassed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
Proposing that the authority to collect sales tax should be delegated to the provinces, he suggested that each province should meet its targets for the federation. “If a province collects more than its target, the excess should be returned to it,” he added.
Addressing the issue of climate change, Bilawal said Pakistan has to suffer the consequences. He highlighted that after the North Pole and South Pole, the Himalayan region has the highest amount of snow. He questioned what would happen if the snow melts in the Himalayan region, expressing concern for the 25 million people living here.
Bilawal criticized the last regime of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and said the opposition was targeted in the name of the ‘Bajwa Doctrine’ and there was a conspiracy to end the 18th Amendment, the NFC Award, and the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP).
He called for constitutional protection for BISP to prevent any harm in future. He appreciated the government’s proposal to increase the allocation for BISP by 27% and announced plans to provide constitutional cover to it.
Lastly, he mentioned that 18 ministries should have been abolished following the 18th Amendment of the Constitution of Pakistan, which has not been done so far. NNI
