ISLAMABAD: The business community in a meeting at Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) has called upon the Municipal Corporations Islamabad (MCI) to urgently withdraw the 300 percent hike in the property tax in Islamabad.
They said that making exorbitant increase in property tax in one go was a great injustice to the residents of Islamabad.
Chairing the meeting, Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan ICCI said that there was no example of making such unprecedented increase in any tax in one go and urged that MCI/CDA to reverse this unjustified decision to save the business community from unnecessary financial burden.
He said that businessmen were not against the payment of taxes, however, any tax rationalization should be done in a gradual manner instead of putting enormous burden on them, which was totally unjustified.
Sardar Yasir Ilyas Khan said that ICCI had obtained a stay order from the Islamabad High Court against this measure of MCI and the court had directed the MCI to charge property tax on the basis of previous rates till the decision of the case.
However, it was unfortunate that instead of complying with the court’s orders, MCI has issued new bills of property tax on enhanced rates including interest of previous months, which was not acceptable by any standards.
He said that for making increase in any tax, MCI should have held its public hearing, but these requirements were not fulfilled for making increase in property tax, therefore, there was no justification for its continuation.
Ms. Fatma Azim Senior Vice President and Abdul Rehman Khan Vice President ICCI said that many affairs of MCI have been transferred back to CDA and urged that Chairman CDA to take back unjustified decisions made by the MCI in order to provide relief to the business community and the citizens of Islamabad.
They urged that MCI to rationalize all taxes including property tax to make them affordable for taxpayers. Muhammad Ejaz Abbasi former President ICCI, Khalid Chaudhry and others speaking at the occasion said that MCI had also increased the trade license fee and signboard tax and urged that these taxes should also be revised. They said that a DMA of CDI in the past had reached a verbal agreement with ICCI to charge signboard tax @ of Rs.60 per square foot, which should be implemented in letter and spirit.
