Traders reject mini-budget, new taxes

TAKHTBHAI: The business community on Thursday flatly rejected the ‘mini-budget’ and predicted that the imposition of Rs170 billion taxes would unleash a storm of inflation, crushing the poor besides slowing down the national economy.

Representatives of the business community held a meeting at the Mardan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) with president Zahir Shah Khan in the chair.

The participants said that the new taxes would lead the economy to a complete destruction.

They said that the federal government had made life miserable through the mini-budget. He said the move would escalate the cost of industrial production and lead to a total collapse of the economy.

The traders’ leaders warned that the business community would take appropriate steps if policies were made against their interests, saying the government would be responsible for any untoward incident.

MCCI president Zahir Shah said it had become quite difficult and instead impossible to run industries and businesses after a whopping increase in the price of electricity, gas and petroleum products. He said businessmen were in great trouble due to the anti-business policies of the government.

He also complained about the unavailability of raw material to industry due to the refusal of commercial banks to open letters of credit. He said unilateral policies of the government had added to difficulties of the business community on a daily basis, which is highly condemnable.

The MCCI president said that those who had claimed to put the economy on the right track and bring down the value of the US dollar had let the country to bankruptcy.

He said on one hand, the government claimed to be taking austerity measures but on the other, it had created a large cabinet.

He added the appointment of a brigade of ministers, advisers and special assistants was a sheer injustice to the poor of the country.