'Absurd and illogical': GM Quader deplores legalising black money with 'minimum' tax
"Those who will legalise black money will not do it for profit, but for security. So, this year's opportunity to legalise black money can have a good effect on the economy,” he says
Creating scope for "thieves" to legalise black money with a minimum tax on it, as proposed in the FY25 budget, is illogical, Jatiyo Party Chairman GM Quader said today (29 June).
"An ordinary taxpayer is required to pay 30% in taxes, while a person with black money only needs to pay 15% to legalise it. This proposal is absurd and illogical, as it essentially allows thieves to legitimise their stolen money by paying a minimal tax," he said during the general discussion on the proposed budget for fiscal year 2024-25 in parliament.
Quader, leader of the opposition in parliament, added, "The minimum tax for legalising black money should be 50-60%."
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He also said black money has been legalised before. However, the new issue about this year's budget proposal is that no authority will be able to raise questions about the source or other details regarding such questionable money.
He added that although various newspapers have been reporting that only around Tk4,000 crore of black money have been legalised so far after this opportunity was provided at different times, this amount is very negligible.
"Many fear that black money launderers may fall into trouble if the government changes,
"Moreover, those who legalise black money will not do it for profit, but for security. So, this year's opportunity to legalise black money could have a good effect on the economy," he added.
Quader further said the country has witnessed the emergence of a substantial affluent and extremely wealthy class, formed of corrupt individuals, bank defaulters, and money launderers. "Various facilities have been ensured in the proposed budget to bring them into the mainstream of the economy."
Criticising mismanagement in the banking sector, he said the banking sector is in a shaky state due to bad loans. "In March this year, the amount of defaulted loans stood at Tk4.39 lakh crores."
"According to a newspaper report, five individuals have loans of over Tk2 lakh crore."
He alleged that concealing information is driving the banking sector towards a precarious state.
He noted that at present there is a widespread economic recession worldwide, yet most countries are in the process of recovering.
"But Bangladesh's deterioration has gone on. Given the severe economic distress, the absence of proactive measures is evident in the budget."
Quader also opined that instead of tackling the issues identified, the allocations in the budget formulation and the taxes proposed for revenue collection could potentially exacerbate the problems in many cases.
