LAHORE
The Federal Board of Revenue top officials are just transferred despite serious corruption allegation while lower officials were suspended without any serious charge.
FBR union former president Mian Abdul Qayyum, who was also dismissed from service for raising voice against high officials’ corruption, said that presently National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has launched inquiry against Shahid Hussain Jatoi, former Member Admin, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and other tax officials. The NAB is investigating the transaction of Rs890 million in his account. Instead of dismissing him he has been just transferred.
On the other hand more than 19 low cadre officials were dismissed while five employees of low rank were suspended from services without any serious allegation. Their crime was that they were union office-bearers, Mian Qayyum said.
“The executive board meeting of the NAB has authorized the inquiry against FBR top official on allegation for misuse of authority through corruption and corrupt practices, illegal gratification against promotions and appointments and accumulation of assets beyond known sources of income.” According to information collected by secret agencies, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has started investigations against Shahid Hussain Jatio, on corruption malpractices, making assets by unknown sources of income and filed a reference.
He claimed that the FBR Union was the first which had pointed high officials who were involved in facilitating billions of rupees tax evasion. But those high officials were further promoted, instead of taking any action against those officials. But it is unfortunate that the management, instead of taking action against corruption of executives, sacked the union workers.
He demanded that operation against corruption should be immediately started across the FBR, without any discrimination of lower or high ranks.
The illegal act of the management against Union President to dismiss him was, in fact, aimed at sabotaging unions struggle for workers welfare. The FBR Union was not only working for the cause of lower staff of the tax department but also endeavoring for the enhancement in tax collection by digging out corruption of billions of rupees.
The central president always raised the voice against tax evasion of several big companies, including so-called non-resident companies, which were evading tax of billions of rupees for a long time in connivance with FBR’s own high officials. The crime of the union was just attempting to make the FBR a transparent tax collecting agency but the officials, having some vested interests, did not want this transparency.
Mian Qayyum vowed to continue struggle for the cause of workers and field staff, who actually make revenue target possible by their efforts, besides pointing out the revenue leakage due to corrupt officers.
He said that Federal Board of Revenue can alone generate the amount equal to the federal budget. Resultantly, there will be no need to approach World Bank or IMF for monetary assistance.
He said that the FBR already contributes around 70 per cent in total budget of Pakistan despite non-recovery of billions of rupees income tax, sales tax and custom duty due to influential politicians and bureaucracy.
More over, the tax department can generate revenue equal to the total volume of federal budget through imposition of wealth tax and implementation of agri tax, which were debated much but never implemented.
The union always recommended the management to terminate corrupt officers responsible for embezzlement of around Rs300 billion annually by the so called non-resident companies.