COMPLAINT SOLVED; WHY THEN PURUSE NOW? Taking suo moto about a month or so back the Chief Justice Peshawar High Court observed that to avoid payment of billions of rupees tax, the chief executives of telecommunication companies have started sale of unregistered SIMs. Earlier early August the Supreme Court was baffled to learn that the entire telecommunication sector in the country was running unbridled and without effective regulations because the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority was virtually non existent. Senior writer and anchor Mujeeb ur Rahman Shami in his talk show about two months ago talking generally on the economy abruptly stopped the Anchor for an urgent issue. He disclosed that usually he used Shaukat Khanum Hospital Laboratory but the other day knowing the good reputation he went to the Chughtiai Lab Lahore. After the tests he wished to make payment through his credit card which was declined that credit card machine was out of order. Shami Sahib waved towards a big banner offering 20% discount to those using MCB credit cards. The staff then, hesitantly, taking his credit card went to some inner room and got the payment processed through the card. Mujeeb ur Rahman Shami wondered as to why the machine was kept hidden deep inside and was of the opinion that the payments through credit cards should be facilitated so the money received is properly documented and does not remain unrecorded. He further disclosed how the well know United Bakery in Islamabad also refused to accept his credit card because it did not had arrangement. According to Shami Sahib the bakery’s daily turn out is in Lacs of Rupees! October-November 2011 the then Government, as is usual, announced it was issuing 7 lac tax notices to tax defaulters belonging mostly to elite. The so efficient brilliant and honest the then Tax Ombudsman Shoaib Suddle announced that he was to approach the Pakistan Election Commission to apprise it about tax defaulters so they don’t get elected. None of us had the courage to raise a simple question viz was stopping them from contesting more important or ensuring having properly been issued those 7 lac tax notices and recover let alone the millions worth question what action he himself practically took against his own people in the FBR for non dispatching those tax notices. This new government recently announced having prepared about one lac notices. These one lac are fresh new in addition to 7 lacs already pending or balance after tearing off 6 lacs of influential ones? Recently the SC also observed that taxes were being recovered from only those who are already honestly paying. The government only a fortnight back after tall claims has exempted the retailers from having a Tax Number, address of business etc. About 6 months back my wife while in Karachi purchased a SIM from the oldest service provider. She was charged Rs. 3,500 and handed over a beautiful pack containing some self praises of the company, a small leaflet containing general terms that she would be responsible for care of SIM etc. She was nor provided any formal Receipt nor any proper official terms & conditions covering the Agreement between her and the company. Thus practically she did not as a subscriber knew at all to prove if any need arises what was her subscribed package, rates, what were her rights etc. She purchased an item but had nothing in her hand to prove her proprietary over that except for in company’s own record. In the past I purchased at two different times two SIMs and I too never had any Payment Receipt or copy of the Agreement. When once I asked for that I was told by the Supervising officer all this record was for the company and not for me. As a conscientious income tax payer I approached the regulatory authority PTA on two issues namely (a) Formal Cash Receipt and (b) a copy of NCR Agreement Form my wife signed one copy of which must be for the customer. I approached PTA when within 3-4 days I got an email from the service provider asking me to provide my contact number. I refused it advising the company that I don’t believe on verbal-telephonic discussion with institutions which later in no form I could prove and secondly that since I had approached the PTA and not the company, it should approach me through the PTA. At this my wife in Karachi received somewhat “disturbing” calls from some company personnel that her SIM could be closed etc. I kept on reminding PTA but no response. I finally approach the Federal Ombudsman on the issue of non response by the PTA which response under the law was mandatory for it. While I eagerly awaited to hear from the PTA the outcome of its investigation, the most shameful for this senior income tax paying citizen rich with 45 year service was when last month on 2 September 2013 he received the very first response the PTA announcing a good news that my complaint “has been solved” and I can check Online Status. When I checked the Online Status it merely read “solved”. What solved and what solved means, I do not know. My 95 years old father in Karachi has a SIM. He for years at an average twice or thrice daily contacted me abroad through it. In his this old age this exercise was like a life saving item for him. About three years back this SIM all of a sudden stopped dialing the international dialing depriving him from this badly needed facility. My 95 years felt extremely alone when daily he requested this one or that one to give a call to me. After failing to get proper attention from the company I complained PTA. A few days later I got an email from me informing me that my complaint was “solved”. The family insisted tried to give him a new SIM but too old from old generation refused on the ground his recorded numbers would also vanish. My father since 5 months is completely bed ridden after felling down and head injury and doctors have lost hopes. I so consistently feel in his semi conscious condition that he for three years felt himself helpless in dialing me abroad rather waited me to ring him. A government functionary can’t understand my feelings which would remain for ever during rest of my life. The SIM till today does not dial international while in PTA record the fault stands solved since three years. There is a general belief that one of the major reason of our today’s national crisis is that our policy makers formulate policies sitting in air conditioned offices without knowing the naked prevailing facts on earth. Knowing well this tendency, the functionaries under them too manufacture and give the policy makers twisted facts figures reports. This is the reason, for example, every week or so the nation hears remittances soaring but practically reserves depleting, employment increasing but practically employment decreasing, so many thousands provided jobs abroad whereas we the Pakistanis living abroad practically see the number of Pakistanis gradually decreasing. Yesterday there was a news item for non registered persons sales tax has been reduced from 17% to 1%. I have somewhere in my old record as a souvenir a press cutting from the newspapers of 30 June indicating CBR was short of billions from target tax collection. Next morning on 01st July the newspapers were telling CBR had college huge more than target. What is costs “manufacturing” figures with a pen (now computer). No one is interested at all to recover tax from elite evaders, it is a hard fact. Figure work, manufacturing and chrome plating those figures, preparing reports sitting in the cool of offices, recording meter readings sitting in homes etc are our real national problem. Last but the point to ponder is while PTA on 2 September 2013 informed me complain was solved now after a month it informs me that I should provide my contact to the company so it may contact me and pursue the matter. If the matter PTA has already solved then point to ponder where there is any need now to pursue the matter? Two points I raised should these be pursued by the Regulator or by the citizen. Dr. Muhammad Yaqoob ex Governor SBP two days back rightly said that present government policy is to ensure reducing real domestic savings and pull out as much possible from the common man and pass on the recovered under one label or the other this pulled out to the businessmen. Asking the citizen himself to “pursue” is the same strategy Dr. Yaqboob has mentioned.
Posted on: Tue, 29 Oct 2013 09:32:13 +0000
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