Govt criticised for not taking parliament into confidence

RECORDER REPORT

ISLAMABAD: Members of National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance have stated that the country is heading towards the IMF doorsteps for another bailout package, and protested against the government for not taking Parliament into confidence over economic issues.

A meeting of finance committee of the National Assembly, chaired by Qaiser Ahmed Shaikh on Thursday, made these remarks while discussing an IMF report on Pakistan economy and prevailing economic situation.

The committee also asked Finance Ministry to provide the details of those whose loans of Rs100 million and above were written off during the last 10 years. The committee said this while taking up a calling attention notice moved by Rana Muhammad Hayat Khan with regard to inadequate laws for recovery of loans from the defaulters including waived-off loans.

The committee recommended to State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to look into the matter of loans waived off by the governments and provide details in this regard within 15 days for further necessary action. The committee recommended to Ministry of Finance to provide the details of write-off loans of last 10 years of Rs100 million and above.

Earlier, Minister for State Rana Afzal’s statement that the government is not considering amnesty scheme created anger among the members as no one including ruling party parliamentarians were not ready to believe the minister and even ruling party’s members including Mian Abdul Mnan stated that the government does not take Parliament into confidence and recommendations of the members were not given serious consideration.

The committee was briefed by Jawed Akhtar, Additional Secretary Commerce, over the current state of fresh negotiations with Chinese counterparts over the second phase of Foreign Trade Agreement (FTA).

The committee members have expressed their apprehensions about the local industry and business community but the minister of state for finance stated that all stakeholders would be taken on board in this regard.

The committee also directed to additional secretary, Ministry of Commerce, to provide the analysis details of import and export between Pakistan and China. The committee further decided that a joint meeting should be convened with Standing Committee on Commerce to discuss the Foreign Trade Agreement (FTA). The committee discussed (in camera) the causes of current devaluation of Pakistani currency against dollar and other currencies.

The chairman of the committee criticized the bureaucracy and even the incumbent government for not taking the stakeholders into confidence and stated that Pakistan has not gained anything from the FTA.

He added how many importers have been taken into confidence before finalizing the FTA. The committee once again recommended to Ministry of Finance to reduce the markup ratio on the said loans up to a single digit.

The committee recommended payment of WHT @ of 2% adjustable for industrial importer at import stage for raw material under chapter 25 to 55. No exemption certificate would be issued to industries, commercial importers importing raw material under chapter 25 to 55 will pay @ 4% WHT as full and final. However, rest of regime of WHT will remain the same.

The committee once again recommended to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to reduce tax rates (236k, 236c) and increase should be made where required. The committee further recommended that FBR should direct their field offices to rectify pending anomalies i.e. Port Qasim, Karachi, where FBR values are much more than market values.

The committee recommended that in the first instance FBR should take measures towards documentations for bringing DC values and raise those by 15% and notify as FBR value by removing upper cap of 236w, as it will increase massive collection of revenue. The committee strongly recommended to FBR to resolve the issues pertaining to FBR valuation table with the consultation of Pakistan Real Estate Investment Forum (PREIF), Association of Builders and Developers (ABAD) and other concerned stakeholders from various cities.

Those who attended the meeting included Dr Shezra Mansab Ali Khan Kharral, Sheikh Fayyaz-ud-Din, Mian Abdul Mannan, Syed Naveed Qamar, Dr Nafisa Shah, Asad Umar, Abdul Rashid Godil and Muhammad Ali Rashid and senior officers from Ministry of Finance & Revenue, Ministry of Commerce, SBP, AGP, FBR and Controller General of Pakistan.