Editorial
Withdrawing tax exemption for govt's top notches
A bold step forward
At a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina last Thursday, the proposal to amend two bills, namely, the Prime Minister's (Remuneration and Privileges) Act 1975 and Ministers', Ministers' for State and Deputy Ministers' (Remunerations and Privileges) Act 1973, got the nod of approval.
We welcome the move and commend the government for fulfilling its pledge. For nowhere in the civilised world does such a culture of exempting VVIPs from government taxes exist.
We will now hope that the cabinet's decision will face no further hurdles before it is passed into law at the next JS session. Therefore, the government needs to expedite the process to turn the proposed bill into law. We hope the government will now exercise its political will to complete the process and see it through to its full implementation.
Even after the laws are passed by parliament, there will still be no room for complacency. For the mere existence of a law does not guarantee its automatic application on the ground. Given our pervasive culture of tax delinquency even among government high-ups, the tax officials would hardly dare to approach the top notches in the administration for the purpose. So, the the VVIPS should themselves come forward to enable the tax administration to perform their duty properly.
VVIPs in question would do well to make the submission of their tax returns public for the sake of transparency. It would be better if they also disclose a detailed break-up of their tax returns. Such practice by the government leaders will translate into good governance in the administration.
Since Bangladesh is one of the lowest taxpaying nations in the world, there is no other alternative but to make our tax base wider. Once public leaders and top administration people begin to set examples in breaking the unhealthy culture of tax evasion, that will leave a cumulative impact on the public in general. They will then be encouraged to emulate the government leaders and grow the habit of paying taxes.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments