The president of the NBR Reform Unity Council and Additional Commissioner, Hassan Muhammad Tarek Rikabdar, on Saturday said the Council is ready to attend the meeting scheduled for Tuesday in a bid to resolve the ongoing deadlock at the National Board of Revenue (NBR).
“We want to sit for discussions, we are ready to join Tuesday’s meeting,” Rikabdar told reporters in front of the Revenue Building.
The NBR Reform Unity Council is currently enforcing its announced complete shutdown programme alongside a ‘March to NBR’ demonstration, reiterating their one-point demand for the immediate removal of the NBR Chairman.
Rikabdar alleged that although the government is committed to introducing reforms at the NBR, the current chairman is creating obstacles at every step.
In reply to a question, he said the Council has not yet received any formal invitation to the upcoming meeting. “There has been no official discussion with us so far, but 16 NBR members have unofficially communicated with us,” he added.
Additional Commissioner Mirza Ashik Rana echoed similar sentiments, stating, “We are positive about participating in the discussion but the invitation should come through the proper channel.”
Council leaders also claimed they were denied entry into the NBR premises, where law enforcement personnel were on high alert.
The NBR Reform Unity Council has been demonstrating with a series of protest programmes, demanding structural reforms and the removal of the NBR Chairman over allegations of administrative irregularities, intimidation of officers, and obstruction of pro-reform initiatives.
Since early June, the agitating officials have carried out work abstentions, hunger strikes, and human chains, disrupting services in tax, VAT, and customs offices nationwide.
