Senior officials, including tax officers, at the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) are now being issued brand-new Honda City vehicles. According to reports, dozens of cars have been delivered to the FBR headquarters in Karachi.

 

Earlier this year, in January, the FBR placed an order for 1,010 Honda City cars worth approximately Rs6 billion. According to reports, an initial payment was made to secure the delivery of 500 vehicles, with the board making an advance payment of Rs3 billion to Honda. 

 

However, it merits a mention that the move was initially met with fierce resistance by lawmakers in Islamabad. When news of the purchase order came to light, a parliamentary panel asked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb to immediately halt the purchase of cars for the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). 

 

The panel also called the purchase "scandalous" because the FBR was to be rewarded despite failing to meet its revenue targets. Critics outlined how the purchase agreement seemed suspicious, accusing the FBR of not giving a fair chance to other car manufacturers. 

 

According to Senate Member Faisal Vawda, the purchase order and approval from the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) were issued on the same day. He claimed that this indicates the possibility that no other car assembler had even been considered, let alone been allowed to bid for the contract.

 

However, the FBR recently sent a letter to a parliamentary committee to explain the importance of these cars and how they will not be misused. As per reports, the letter clarified that only grade 17 and 18 officers in field offices will be able to use the cars for official purposes. Officers above grade 18 will be locked out of the scheme and will be unable to utilise the car for official purposes.

 

Moreover, the FBR clarified that cars will be assigned to offices and not specific individuals. Cars will also have official FBR stickers to restrict instances of misuse.

 

The FBR has claimed that it requires the cars to be able to boost tax collection levels. While analysts agree that the cars could help increase the efficiency of FBR officials, thereby increasing revenues, reports suggest that the purchase still draws opposition from the general public.