Dr. Ikramul Haq The Prime Minister, while speaking at the awards ceremony held for top 150 taxpayers on February 20, 2019, said “The true VIPs of Pakistan are those people who pay the most tax and such citizens should be felicitated and honoured”. He also said there was a need to change the mindset “under...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq In Pakistan, every effort to promote voluntary tax compliance is countered by an argument that taxpayers’ money is not spent for the purpose it is collected. Many say why we should pay taxes when even fundamental facilities like health and education are denied by the State. The substantial portion...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq A number of studies confirm that rich-poor divide in Pakistan is increasing alarmingly. According to conservative estimates, 63% of poor in Pakistan are in the category of ‘transitory poor’. The rest of 32% and 5% of the population—subsisting below the poverty line—are ‘chronic’ and ‘extremely poor’, respectively. Chronic and...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq In its first 6 months the Imran Khan government has been unable to resolve the question “to go or not to go to the IMF.” All manner of laughable statements have come out of the economic leaders in the government and their advisers. “We don’t need to go to the IMF if...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq According to a report, the Government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) “is seeking $400 million or Rs. 56 billion loan from the World Bank (WB) for a risky venture of fixing the country’s ailing tax system amid apprehensions that foreign-funded reforms package in the past had not yielded desired results”....Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq In Pakistan, the poor are subjected to heavy and oppressive taxes, whereas the members of militro-judicial-civil complex, absentee landowners and businessmen-turned-politicians enjoy numerous tax breaks, unprecedented perks and perquisites, benefits, including allotment of expensive plots, free or at concessional price, at prime locations. The way they waste and plunder...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “Politics is war without bloodshed while war is politics with bloodshed”—Mao Zedong President Donald Trump, in his 82-minute-long long State of the Union speech on February 6, expressed positive outcome of the second summit between him and North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, scheduled in Vietnam on February 27-28, 2019. He said that “much...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq Selection for and conduct of audit is not ex facie detrimental to the interest of taxpayer, however to exercise such powers; the discretion needs to be structured by framing rules and issuance of policies for ensuring consistency and certainty of procedures; transparency and fairness— Nestle Pakistan Limited etc. Versus...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq The 9th National Finance Commission (NFC), in its maiden meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Asad Umar, held in Islamabad on February 6, 2019, discussed besides other issues recommendations for improving the distribution of resources among provinces and smooth communication between the centre and provincial administrations. The last NFC Award of December 2009...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “I think that’s important—that transgender individuals are just like everyone else. We have our interests, our hobbies, our things we like to do.”—Jazz Jennings (b. October 6, 2000, is a transgender male to female activist) For centuries transgender human beings have been the target of contempt, mockery, hatred, disrespect, and treated in a...Read More