ISLAMABAD, Feb 21: The Central Board of Revenue (CBR) has decided to constitute a three-member committee to review the present system of adjudication and recommend measures within a month to make it user-friendly.

An official source in the CBR told Dawn the decision was taken in the quarterly conference of collectors of customs, sales tax and central excise (Adjudication and Appeals) held here on Monday.

The committee will comprise one member each from Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, CBR, and an Adjudication Collector. It will also submit proposals for new role of Adjudication Collectorates keeping in view the experience of the last four years since the present system was established and considering the future of taxes after completion of reforms programme.

According to an official announcement, it was also decided in the conference to hold a workshop of Customs (Adjudication) and Collectors of Sales Tax and Central Excise next month to bring the two sides together on major legal controversies and to develop proposals for appropriate changes in the existing laws and procedures aimed at quick disposal of the adjudication cases and appeals and elimination of frivolous litigation.

CBR Chairman M. Abdullah Yusuf addressing the conference expressed the confidence that the recommendations of the committee and the workshop would go a long way in streamlining the system to the benefit of the taxpayers and to save time, money and energy by avoiding unnecessary litigation.

He advised the Sales Tax and Customs Collectors to address all the genuine problems of the taxpayers and clear the pending adjudication cases and appeals by the end of current financial year.

Yusuf called upon the collectors to gear up their efforts to meet the challenges faced by the organization and the country. "We have to be changed with the rapid changing world and in accordance with the new global economic environment", he added.

CBR Member (Legal) Saeed Ahmed Zaidi informed the conference that out of a total of 13,326 pending cases of adjudication and appeals on July 1, 2004, 9,979 cases were disposed of till December 31, 2004.

He further said that during the second quarter of current financial year (Oct-Dec), Adjudication and Appeals Collectorates disposed of 4,999 cases involving revenue of Rs10.59 billion.