PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) has termed the federal budget for financial year 2023-24 as disappointing and not growth-oriented.

“The federal government didn’t take relief measures for business community while keeping in view the depressing economic conditions,” Ijaz Khan Afridi, the SCCI’s acting president, told a press conference following presentation of the federal by federal minister for finance Senator Ishaq Dar in the National Assembly here on Friday.

Mr Afridi termed the budget as jugglery of words and miscalculation of figures, in which no relief was given to the business community.

He lamented that the SCCI proposals were not incorporated in the budget.

Former Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Ghazanfar Bilour, industrialists association, Peshawar president Malik Imran Ishaq, leaders of traders’ community, importers and exporters were also present during the presser.

Ejaz Afridi said the business community was playing a pivotal role in the economic development of the country by paving various taxes, and the government should have taken measures to provide relief to promote businesses and revive the industry.

He was of the view that the government had taken some steps in the budget for newly-merged districts, but they were not sufficient to alleviate miseries of the tribesmen.

While responding to various queries of mediapersons, the acting SCCI president said the government had set an ambitious tax collection target by increasing it from the current Rs7,200 billion to Rs9,200 billion for next fiscal year, which was clear that it was not a tax-free budget.

Afridi said Pakistan was currently confronted with severe economic crisis, so a special relief package should have been announced for the business community to turn around the economy.

He, however, said the government planned to impose an additional burden of taxes on the business community and people instead of providing any relief to them.

Mr Afridi said the tax collection target set for the next financial year proved that the government had succumbed to the dictation of foreign financial lenders.

“We completely reject the budget for next financial year,” he said.

Published in Dawn, June 10th, 2023