Ijaz Butt
Alleged corrupt practices have been on the rise in the Faisalabad Excise and Taxation Department and the officers, instead focusing on improving service delivery and revenue generation, are busy minting money from the consumers through different tactics.
According to a survey conducted by this scribe, citizens complained about the alleged corrupt practices adopted by officials of the Faisalabad Excise and Taxation Department.
They regretted that the government pays every month a huge amount to money to these officials as salary only to serve the masses. “But it seems these officials have decided to collect money for themselves through different tactics instead of collecting tax for the state exchequer,” they alleged.
A taxpayer while seeking anonymity, said Excise and Taxation Department Inspectors have devised a “digital method” of collecting money by blackmailing taxpayers.
He informed that when a taxpayer visit these officers to deposit their property or other taxes voluntarily, they start applying different methods to dig so sort of anomaly in your record merely to “make you pay them extra for their own pockets.”
According to sources in the department, Khurram Shehzad, a citizen from Faisalabad and others have filed applicant against different Inspectors of the department including Inspector Muhammad Hussain who is posted in Jaranwala Road Circle, but the department has failed so far to take action against the them and restore the taxpayers confidence in the department.
“Inspector Muhammad Hussain first erased out tax receipts from the record and then issued us arrears bills merely to create opportunity for demanding bribe”, alleged Khurram Shehzad.
“The inspector has been trying to blackmail and threatens us with sealing off our property if we do not bribe him”, the citizen added.
According to sources, inspector Muhammad Hassan has been working in the Faisalabad Excise and Taxation Department for the past almost 20 years and whenever he is transferred, he gets a restraining order from the court.
“The department high ups remain silent on Mr Hassan’s activities as he enjoys contacts in the corridor of powers”, the sources informed, adding that the inspector also knows well the art of appeasing the officers “with gifts.”
When Divisional Correspondent of Pakistan Observer contacted Mohammad Hussain for his comment, he flatly refused.
He said that he does not want any talk on the subject and “it’s better you should contact DG or Minister for Excise and Taxation.”
The citizens have demanded the Excise and Taxation Minister and the Punjab Chief Minister to take notice of the rampant corruption practices in the Faisalabad Excise and Taxation Department.
