THE cabinet on Monday approved a new draft law to authorize the government to impose one percent surcharge on mobile call revenue raising questions on the justification of the additional tax. Skeptics also wonder whether the surcharge would add to promoting more development activities or more work as a discouraging factor to the unhindered development of the mobile telecom sector and its multipliers in the country’s socio-economic development.
As the news report said, the government is pushing the move saying the growing tele-density in the country has made it a good source of revenue and the money so collected would be used especially for promoting activities in health and education sectors. The government estimate suggest that the number of mobile users in the country now stands at around 12.18 crore and under the new law, the authorities would be allowed to realize one Taka more from every 100 Taka that will be spent on mobile call charge, in addition to the existing 15 percent regular VAT on mobile calls.
The government aims at earning at least Tk 140 crore annually at current level of mobile phone and internet users and to use the money for public good. But fiscal experts and common people alike hold the view that such move would only add to tax load on the people, besides the fact that it also lacks fiscal discipline. We see that as the size of the budget is growing and demand for fund is exponentially rising, the government is also looking for new areas of fund. In fact the surcharge is going to be a double taxation measure and counter-productive to achieving a ‘Digital Bangladesh,” so dear to ruling party’s central leadership.
We must say the government intention may be good but if the good intention is not backed by honest action, it often ends up in greater corruption. The TIB’s corruption barometers shows 81 percent respondents think the health sector is highly corrupt while 55 percent believe they are victims of pervasive corruption in the education sector. So, the extra money to be realized may rather encourage dishonest people to make fortune or the government may use it otherwise also under a system of governance where accountability and transparency are missing.
The draft law titled “Development Surcharge and Levy (impose and collection) Act, 2015” will give the government wide ranging powers including amending or changing the existing call rates and levying surcharge. The question is why the government is targeting common mobile users when the international call system known as ‘voice over internet protocol’ (VoIP) is freely misused and revenue grabbed by dishonest business firms operating under the cover of politically influential quarters of the government.
We urge the government to put the telecom sector in order rather going for double taxation of common people from fisherman to factory workers and every body from the poor to rich.
