The latest confrontation between the present government and the business community is largely centered on the issue of taxes, especially the recent move by CBR to elicit more detailed information from the assessees. With the burgeoning budget deficit playing havoc with the calculations of the mandarins in the Ministry of Finance, with the market on a menacingly recessionary track, and with the governmental wastage on an upsurge, the desire to create more revenue resources is looming large on the fiscal planners. On top of all this, the IMF and the World Bank are conducting the symphony being played by the MinFin orchestra.

It is in this context that the CBR has decided to play tough with the belligerent business community, especially the so-called "small traders", who are out to defy the dictates of the collecting authorities. According to a section of the press, the senior CBR officials recently disclosed that the Board is planning to issue a monthly bulletin which will carry details about the income, industry, stocks, procurement of raw materials and other items, and the sales figures alongwith the duties and taxes paid, of all businessmen. One pertinent reason for this public disclosure is to enable a particular businessman’s competitors to inform the income tax authorities if the former had concealed certain relevant facts that could have resulted in more taxes or duties.

Finally after nearly five decades, some one in the government is brave enough to bring transparency in the industry and trade figures. Until now there was no way to ascertain or determine whether the statistics submitted to the tax authorities were factual or whether they were cooked-up submissions. Furthermore, it will now provide the rivals of a particular businessman to check and rein in the competition. The business community will be compelled to provide the true picture because there will be many to counter or verify the authenticity of the published data.

The initiation of this process of transparency could very well be the harbinger of more overt disclosures of other tax-payers or tax-dodgers, and even of people who earn a lot but manage to keep themselves clear of any tax-net. At the same time, it would also provide the general public, information about the actual business dealings of many a businessman. Moreover, it would be of immense importance also to the various marriage bureaus who can then determine the locus standi of any businessman on the lookout for a beautiful bride. The thousands who make their living hustling for advertisements for pseudo magazines or for souvenirs for obscure causes will also be able to fan the facts in front of the face of those businessmen who profess losses or lack of sales as an excuse whenever these people pester them for advertisements. At the same time, it would matter a lot to those persons who are involved in providing "relaxing entertainment" to a quite a few businessmen, who invariably desire the services of this particular trade. (Translation of "relaxing entertainment: wine, woman, and song).

However, as they say, it takes two to tango. Why not take this disclosure mania to more greener pastures? The businessmen involved in shielding the true facts and figures do get tremendous support and aid from those in the collecting branches of the government. If there is any evasion, there is bound to be a "sympathetic" government official helping out the industrialist or trader. The same is true in matters relating to customs, income tax, wealth-tax, sales tax, EOBI, SESSI, etc., etc. Thus there is a need to flash the under-the-table deals that have been going on in these departments too, what to talk about KMC, KDA, WAPDA, et al.

The FPCCI should venture upon the task to publish a monthly bulletin highlighting the amount of money paid to the officials of various departments to get things done. The apex body should send circulars to the various Chambers and Associations soliciting information on sundry officials. The members of these bodies should provide direct information as to the amount of money paid to get work done. Initially, the "extortion" amount should be declared. This is the amount collected by the factory inspectors, the EOBI / SESSI inspectors, etc. who have made the lives of industrialists miserable. The names of the industrialists and businessmen should be confidential while the names of the officers and the total amount extorted be published. Gradually, this exercise can be expanded to cover other departments.

Lately, the newspapers have been publishing details about the taxpayers. It seems that the top people in Pakistan, including the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan pay ZERO taxes. Unfortunately, nobody has come out with how much they have, in fact, earned. This is relevant too, because the salaried people can calculate and then conclude that since they pay taxes on their incomes they must really be jackasses or out of their cockamamie minds. "Yeh chaman hai tumara, hamara nahin" was probably written for those who are in power and avoid any and all ways of paying even a penny in taxes.

The business community should be grateful to the CBR for taking this monumental and historic step to reveal all essential details. Once the FPCCI starts publishing its own bulletin, then hopefully in a short period of time, the citizens of Pakistan will get all details that are hidden from them. For example, what is the composition of the ownership of Civic Centers (Pvt) Ltd, the operators of Awami Markaz; who are the main players behind the New Islamabad City, who are the middlemen behind the mega-purchases of armaments, planes, and submarines, who are the people who are really pulling the strings behind the privatization of certain financial institutions to specifically desired strategic buyers, and how much did each LOTA get in the recent Punjab Assembly opera (if at all they did get the moolah), who are behind those front men or dummy corporations who have been allotted prime tracts of land at peanut prices, etc, etc.

The time is now ripe for everyone to go on a transparency kick. This is one very logical step to get the country out of the present malaise and into an open-air situation where those who come into Government service do so ONLY for the emoluments prescribed in their basic pay scales, where the business community keeps books which are factual and not some accountant’s chicanery, and where the politicians who get elected to rule really do care and work for the glory of the nation and not for the fattening of their purses or pockets. CBR has shown the way. Let us now all take a walk on this avenue. Who is going to lead this walk-a-thon?