I cannot understand why the Commissioner of Inland Revenue did not wait until the Christmas activities are over before inundating the living and the dead with income tax arrears.
Whereas the initiative taken by the Minister of Finance is to be recommended for choosing practicality over bureaucracy in writing off the penalties and the interests for payment, sending bills to the taxpayers at this moment in time was not appropriate.
First of all, the bills disrupted the spending power of the consumers because their budget had to be rerouted to accommodate these unexpected bills.
Secondly, these bills were not on the agenda of the consumers and there is no doubt that they are another blow to their spending power. If the consumers had made allowance for the water and electricity bills, they have definitely not included these tax bills in their budget.
I am not against of paying Caesar his dues, but what I am against is that the decision to send these bills, at this moment in time, during the Christmas season, when the family and the average wage earner will be rushing to buy presents and to go that extra mile all of a sudden, they are being hampered because the department of Inland Revenue, without prior notice, decided to wake the dead from the grave and send us its Christmas greetings!
The timing was not right and everybody knows this and it is a pity that the government gets the blame as being insensitive to Christmas and to the Christmas spirit in our families.
In the past, everybody looked forward to their Christmas bonus, which was perceived to be the government’s ‘Christmas present’. Today, the tables have turned and it is now the government that is expecting the bonus from the people.
The bonus has made way for the bills which, lo and behold: out of the 12 months in one year, it is practically always during this time of the year that they do us the honour.
There is a lot happening during this period: three or more pantomimes going on at the same time, musicals and many other Christmas occasions. I admire the organisers who have the courage to keep the theatre calendar going in Malta; but at the same time I find it hard to believe that they will be able to fill the theatres for each of their performances. I feel that they ought to organise themselves better, so that they do not feel discouraged and the public will not be in a panic as to where to spend the budget.
It is very odd how we are encouraged to give for charity and at the same time we are given less and less spending power. As any parent can attest, Christmas presents are not a discretionary expense: only those without a heart would think otherwise.
Yet the middle class especially the wage earners can no exemptions from tax. Because if we as self employed were forgiven the penalties and interests for failing to pay on time what is due to the government, the faithful wage earner does not get any reward for paying his taxes on time.
We all understand that this is especially hard for the normal and average wage earners to keep with the upper class expectations of how Christmas is supposed to be although even middle class families often run into trouble.
And the decision by the CIR to send the bills to the heirs of the deceased, years after they are due and notwithstanding that many of them are barred by the eight-year time limit imposed by law, was a decision spoiling the Christmas spirit to many of our families.
Presents are a joy to our retailers as well and I am surprised as to how they kept quiet so far. We all know that unless the people are given incentives to spend, there is no way that you can revitalise the economy. And Christmas was the right time to do this, were it not for the foolish idea that somebody had of sending these tax bills right before Christmas.
Now the consumer has to once again shift his priorities, because payment of taxes and of water and electricity bills come above the turkey and the presents.
And all this because of the insensitivity and the lack of foresight of some!
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