In a speech on Tuesday, Prime Minister Imran Khan said that taxes are essential for the country’s economic stability and existence, and he believed that the use of technology will aid in the prevention of tax fraud and increase revenue collection to the tune of Rs 8000 billion every year.
“Our most serious problem is that we are forced to borrow loans in order to govern the nation.” Taxes are necessary for the operation of a country. “It’s important for us to maintain our stability,” he said.
The Prime Minister voiced these thoughts during the inauguration of the Federal Board of Revenue’s track and trace system, which was the world’s first of its kind (FBR). The installation of the track and trace system, according to the Prime Minister, was a significant and good accomplishment that will have a far-reaching influence.
According to the FBR’s track and trace system, which will be implemented in significant industries such as tobacco, fertiliser, sugar, and cement, electronic monitoring of the manufacture and sale of these products would be possible. Under the new method, no sugar bag may be transported out of the production site, factory, or manufacturing facility unless it has been stamped and labelled with an individual identification mark. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) intended to adopt the new approach in the beverage and petroleum industries, as well.
In spite of having a reasonable tax-to-GDP ratio in the West and the highest in Scandinavian countries, Prime Minister stated that Pakistan could not promote a tax culture for a variety of reasons, including the aristocratic lifestyle of the ruling elite in the past, which eroded taxpayers’ confidence in their governments.
He said that the habit of not paying due taxes has been around since the colonial period, when people used to believe that their hard-earned money was being syphoned off by foreign rulers while they were denied access to fundamental services.
The country’s debt increased from Rs. 6000 billion to Rs. 30000 billion in 10 years [2008-18] under the previous regimes, according to him, despite the fact that there was no one mega-development project or dam built during that time.
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