I WOULD like to give some suggestions for the 2015-16 federal budget. All thresholds (Rs400,000) before the imposition of taxes become applicable should be abolished and at least a token tax levied.

This action will not only result in more collection of taxes, but also substantially increase the number of taxpayers who can then become part of the populace which protests unwarranted spending of tax collections by the government.

The 50 largest taxpayers of the country should be given a seat in the senate for the next three years so that those who pay the highest taxes have a say in parliament which, inter alia, decides how tax collections are spent.

Those who pay high taxes are bound to be more selective and careful in ensuring that government resources are expended properly, with critical areas like education, healthcare, infra-structure development, poverty alleviation, etc., getting the major share.

One condition of being a member of parliament should be that the potential candidate should be an income tax return filer and payer. Those who do not pay taxes should not have any say in how the state distributes its resources.

Shahla Moin

Karachi

Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2015

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