Elite classes don’t deserve subsidies, tax collection vital for economy: PM

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday regretted that elite classes in the country had monopoly over the 90 percent resources of the country and stressed that they did not deserve any subsidies.

Addressing the first meeting of the federal cabinet, the prime minister said that they required controlling the issue of tax evasion and power and gas thefts to ensure availability of maximum resources for the development of the country.

He further said that the government was ensuring all out efforts for easy availability of the daily commodities during the holy month of Ramazan at affordable prices.

Highlighting the huge economic challenges, he said that the masses had given them the responsibility to address these serious issues and they were equally answerable to the people who had given them a mandate to form the government.

He urged the members of the cabinet to serve the nation and country with new fervor and commitment so that they could be remembered for delivering on their promises.

After February 8 general elections, the political parties received a split mandate, the PML-N, PPP and the allied parties were given the mandate to form the government.

Now, this mandate should be respected which also required that they should concentrate their energies and move on the path of progress rapidly, he added.

The prime minister said that during their previous 16-month government, the people had witnessed their performance, adding that they saved the country from running into default. He said interim government followed them but the economic situation in the country was stable and did not worsen.

The prime minister said that once more, they took the responsibility of steering the country out of the huge challenges and without wasting time, they should tread upon that path leading to destination.

Felicitating the nation on the arrival of Ramazan, he said that about Rs12 billion Ramazan Package was being initiated under which the edible items at the Utility Stores and mobile utility stores would be provided to the poor and deserving.

Besides, under Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) millions of rupees were being distributed among the poor as additional cash amount.

He underlined the need of strict monitoring of the distribution of different items under Ramazan package so that the food stuff should be readily available to the deserving.

Mentioning the spiraling price hike as one of the major challenge, he stressed that the federal government, in collaboration with the provinces, would take measures to reduce prices in the holy month.

“I will not tolerate any kind of disturbance in the prices of commodities in the federal territory,” he emphasized and assured support and assistance to the provinces. He said that they would make all out efforts to provide relief to the commoners.

PM Shehbaz Sharif also regretted that about Rs500 billion power theft was reported annually and questioned the subsidy provided to the elite classes, terming it the biggest contradiction.

He further mentioned that the combined circular debt of power and gas sector had spiraled to 5000 billion rupees now. He also referred to high costs of power due to functioning of the ‘junk plants’ running on diesel and incurring billion of losses.

He maintained that different mafias involved in this cycle should be dealt with by reforms and improvement in the earliest.

“The fatal cancer has hollowed the nation,” he said, adding that PIA had ballooning debt and liabilities of about Rs 840 billion, whereas other state-owned enterprises were also incurring billions of rupees losses annually.

He said that they were taking loans to pay salaries to the employees of these state entities. He underscored the need of enhancement of tax net without burdening the honest tax payers, besides stressing that loopholes which led to tax evasion of billion of rupees should be plugged.

Expressing his anguish, he said that the contradiction in the tax system could be gauged form the fact that retailers were being taxed sparing the wholesalers.

The prime minister also expressed the hope that the new cabinet members would meet the challenges to take the nation forward.

He also mentioned the climate change as another vital challenge which had caused devastation in the past. He further said that the youth bulge of the country was a huge asset which required to be converted into great opportunity, adding that they would formulate a complete economic plan.

The prime minister also termed the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) as an effective mechanism in improving the investment environment in the country. The prime minister said that Pakistan would seek foreign investment instead loans and highlighted various steps in this regard.