January 6, 2016
President PBIF and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, Former Provincial Minister of Information Technology and First Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI Mian Zahid Hussain urged FBR to ensure safety of the financial record, given to them for tax compliance of tax payers since according to news reported by different channels that employee of FBR have been arrested over suspicion of facilitating terror networks. He told that weak security system is apprehended to be used by different terror outfits for identification of easy targets for ransom.
Mian Zahid Hussain told that Business Community is very much concerned of illegal elements, penetrated in Tax office and can misuse their official position. He pleads FBR to ensure protecting financial data since, unrestrained access to these data will make Business Community fully exposed to terror networks and exaggerate their problems to manifolds. Without prerequisites FBR should not grant access to any employee. Without prior security check granting access is neither fair nor justified, he added.
After recent changes in Law, FBR has acquired copious rights and now entitled to access any data of taxpayers ranging from Personal, Banking Account and Sales and Purchase Transactions. This enhancement was considered to escalate Govt. revenue and promoting growth but this arrest from Tax Office created fears among Business Community over its consequences, he told. Apart from unregistered cases around 14,437 kidnapping cases were reported last year in Punjab alone, in which 95 kidnapping were intended for ransom, that money used to promote anarchy within the country, arms acquired through these ransom money is used against Security Forces, which is not to be tolerate in any case, he added.
He told that curbing terror financing will help Pakistan to rapidly break the neck of terrorist groups. In 2015, Taliban alone spend approximately US$560 million in which US$400 availed through drug trafficking, Hezbollah spend US$500 in which major portion comes from ransom, drug trafficking, other illegal activities while 60% of Daesh revenue comes from Kidnapping and Ransom apart from other sources i.e. oil & gas smuggling and extortions from local population.
Increasing reporting requirements are important to make effective decisions but FBR should maintain utmost secrecy and safety of data gathered, he told. Business Community appreciate MoU for joint effort fighting terrorism with Sri Lanka during recent visit of PM.
