ISLAMABAD: Stressing on the significance of tax payment, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday said only 1.7 million people were paying tax, which couldn’t support 210 million population of Pakistan, ARY News reported.

Addressing a ceremony to honour taxpayers in Islamabad, PM Khan said the government couldn’t bear overall expenses under the current ratio of taxpayers in the country.

He said the indirect tax is collected from poor people, which is a great injustice. He said Pakistan had great potential and it could raise the revenue collection up to Rs 8 trillion.

The prime minister said collecting zakat from wealthy people and spending it on poor people was the fundamental principle of the State of Madinah. He said Pakistan couldn’t be made a welfare state without following that principle.

Read: PM Imran directs FBR to expand tax net, expose tax evaders

PM Khan said just after coming into power, he had launched austerity drive in the government to save taxpayers’ money.

He said he bore all his personal expenditure and contrary to previous rulers he had not declared any place as his camp office.

The prime minister said it was ironic that a common man was also paying a similar amount of tax that he was paying. Khan said Pakistan was one of the top countries with a low tax collection ratio.

“I’ve reduced the expenditure of PM House by 30 per cent and now we are saving Rs 300 million through this measure”, he stated.

He lamented that the wealthy people were not paying taxes while the poor were constantly being burdened with taxes.

“Anyone nowadays is going abroad for medical treatments. Ishaq Dar has gone out of the country for treatment while Sharifs have paid Rs 280 million just on their treatment”, he slammed.

He said those politicians ruled the country for over 30 years, but they couldn’t build a hospital to get themselves treated.

“I’d been treated two times at Shaukat Khanum Hospital. My disease was also of a serious nature, but I didn’t leave the country” he told the gathering.

He suggested politicians to first start austerity and accountability from themselves and then expand it to the public.

PM Khan said annually Rs 6 billion were given in charity to the Shaukat Khanum Hospital, adding people give donations only when they were sure their amount would be utilized transparently.

He vowed to expand tax collection net and ease obstacles faced by taxpayers at the moment. “This target can only be achieved by winning the trust of people,” he stated.

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