Zimbabweans have reiterated the need for the removal of the 2% transaction tax saying it is a burden to the already financially hamstrung and over-taxed population, NewsDay reported.
The 2% intermediated levy on all electronic transactions was introduced in 2018 by Finance and Economic Development minister Mthuli Ncube as part of austerity measures to kickstart the economy.
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Citizens who attended the 2023 pre-budget public hearings on Monday in Harare said the government should reduce the tax burden on ordinary people and increase corporate tax.
The hearings are being conducted by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Budget and Finance and the Parliamentary Thematic Committee on Sustainable Development Goals.
Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD) representative Darlington Mazonga said:
In this country we have so many inequalities, the rich are enjoying on their own. My plea is for government to increase corporate tax, pay as you earn and totally scrap the 2% tax because the tax regime has increased poverty levels in the country.
He also appealed for a debt audit to be introduced. ZIMCODD has always been critical of the government’s borrowings which it says are not sustainable, and are benefiting political elites.
Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) local ecumenical fellowship and economic justice champion Gibson Botomani said the government must consider into the mineral resource to remove the tax burden on the citizenry. Added Botomani:
Citizens are heavily taxed and the 2023 national budget must allocate adequate resources to the ministries of Health and Education. Government must be transparent in contract disclosure.