KARACHI: There may be a set of rules for field formations of Pakistan Customs (PCS) and Inland Revenue (IRS) enabling the policy that members/office bearers of trade bodies facing litigation and/or convicted for corruption and fiscal frauds by any judicial forum would not be considered authorized representative of their respective trade bodies.
Sources said Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has it established on the basis of evidence that certain trade bodies were formed to serve as the influence group to patronize illegal practices.
Authorities are convinced that should be a code of conduct regarding membership criteria of trade bodies to discourage misuse of the representation of the trade body.
FBR is reportedly considering a practice wherein FBR employees would not entertain members/office bearers of trade bodies facing litigation and/or convicted for corruption and fiscal fraud. Such persons would not be treated discriminatory, but the cases from the platform of their respective trade bodies would not be entertained.
It was learnt that the proposal would be forwarded to the Ministry of Commerce so that a practice could be initiated aimed at framing the policy rules.
It may be mentioned here that Trade Bodies in Pakistan are created more for serving individual’s purposes and not for the community and industry. These single-room associations are made only to stage protests demonstrations and often violence to pressurize the authorities. These associations even obstruct execution of official duties.
To recall, customs authorities recently raided a mobile market in Saddar to seize smuggled non-duty products. But, a mob carrying tag of some mobile market association attacked the officials and didn’t let them enter the market.
More recently, NAB authorities have arrested president Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the charges of corruption and causing huge loss to the economy.
Several chambers and associations are patronized by political personalities to pressurize government, resultantly either laws/rules are not framed to promote a just tax culture, or even if such policies are framed, these are never implemented.
Trade bodies including chambers and other associations need to be purged of bad elements, which unfortunately are governing these bodies in most cases. According to reports majority of the members/office bearers of all the trade associations are non-filers and tax evaders. A large number of such members of trade associations are facing litigation in fiscal fraud cases.
Sources said as soon as such rules are framed, the same would be announced via notification.