The Federal Board of Revenue has reportedly collected nearly Rs1.9 trillion through electricity bills over the past four fiscal years. Instead of broadening the tax base, the state has turned electricity bills into an instrument of compulsory tax collection. This approach reflects a deeper structural failure. Agriculture, much of the retail sector, real estate and large parts of the informal economy remain lightly taxed or outside the effective tax net, while compliant citizens continue to shoulder an ever-growing fiscal burden. Such policies reward tax avoidance and penalise those who cannot escape withholding taxes and indirect levies. A tax system perceived as unfair ultimately weakens public trust and voluntary compliance. Governments must tax according to the ability to pay, not merely the ability to collect.
Dr Zafar Khan Safdar
Islamabad
