SCCI concerned over massive financial anomalies in FCA system

Fazal Moqeem demands reform initiatives for transparency and decentralization of the FCA
PESHAWAR
Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry expressed grave concern over alleged financial anomalies worth billions of rupees in the Faceless Customs Assessment (FCA) system and called for impartial and fair probe and de-centralization of the system.
Fazal Moqeem Khan, president Abdul Jalil Jan, senior vice president and Shehryar Khan, vice president and the whole executive committee in a joint statement here on Thursday strongly reacted over the alleged Rs 100 Billion revenue loss to national kitty through the faceless customs system in the last three months.
Senior office bearers said the system was launched by the government in the last year, with the objective to streamline trade procedures; enhance assessment quality; ensure uniformity and transparency in goods declarations (GDs); simplify the workload of appraising officers (AOs); and improve trade facilitation.
However, they said business community had raised concerns over reassessment of consignments in Karachi dryport after examination by customs authorities at local dryport under the FCA, and demanded to decentralize the faceless customs system to ease the difficulties and prevent them from financial losses, in shape of damages during unsealing the goods shipments.
SCCI said the faceless customs system has almost lost its credibility following the Pakistan Custom Audit report, revealing widespread discrepancies, tax evasion, under-invoicing etc that has clear hit on the government’s initiative to curb corruption but also build up a mistrust among businessmen, doing trade in a legal, transparent and under due procedures, rule and policies.
Senior office bearers went on to say that the financial irregularities had put a question mark on the whole system and needed to be revamped through further reforms.
The chamber urged the government to conduct a fair and impartial inquiry into the gross financial anomalies under the Faceless Customs Assessment System and those responsible, must be held accountable for it.
SCCI demanded the pragmatic steps to decentralise the faceless customs system and take further reforms initiatives to block the way of the financial misappropriation and discrepancies and bring transparency and fairness in the system.