EDITORIAL: Amnesty on tax arrears interest, penalty may work

Sages down history have said that ‘there are more ways than one to skin a cat.’ Generally speaking, this is meant to convey the message that problems can be solved in a variety of ways. But this is only if and when one has the ability to see around corners – and think out of the box.

A more or less similar example of this which readily comes to mind is the recent decision by the government to grant an amnesty on interest and penalties owed to it by taxpayers who have been late in paying government taxes.

For far too long, taxpayers in particular, and other stakeholders in general – including investors; chambers of commerce, mining, etc.); business community organisations (Private Sector Foundation, National Business Council, Confederation of Tanzania Industries), the Tax Reform Task Force) – had lobbied for taxation relief of one sort or another.

This could have come in the forms of tax exemptions and/or remissions, as well as reduced tax rates and/or the extant multiple taxes. Indeed, the government has responded here there and over there – but often doing so haphazardly, lackadaisically, intermittently.

A tax amnesty is not a tax exemption. It’s a tax compliance strategy that benefits the taxman and taxpayer alike. So, the government has purposefully resorted to the strategy, granting full amnesty on the interest and penalties due on tax arrears – but on condition that the outstanding principal tax is paid by December 31, 2018 latest.

This is with a view to recovering unpaid taxes a-plenty – even as it gives taxpayers a breathing opportunity to realign themselves and become ‘better’ taxpayers henceforth.

Fair enough. But, we hope that it works now and well into the future.

Minister right on DCs

Regional Administration and Local Government minister Selemani Jafo did the right thing to condemn the reported abuse of power by district commissioners. Indeed, controversial decisions by some DCs, for example, to lock up people (including civic leaders) for 48 hours, leave a lot to be desired.

While we are not privy to the finer details of why exactly some of these people are being locked up, we are worried that it’s becoming a norm by some DCs to want to wantonly exercise their arresting powers even in situations where dialogue could have helped.

The minister’s sentiments give one the impression that such wayward behaviour now borders on the blatant abuse of state power. Honestly, that’s not what they were sworn in to do. It’s understandable that DCs, like any other public leader, face challenges that may force them to crack the whip.

But punishment and ordering people around is not and cannot be their preoccupation – not when we have such glaring gaps in social service delivery. As the minister rightly put it, if this goes unchecked, such behaviour may end up turning the people against their government. Abuse of power should not be tolerated, and the government must not hesitate to discipline wayward DCs.