Not giving tax refunds part of previous regime's dirty tricks

I refer to the Malaysiakini report Najib must come clean on his role in the missing GST billions.

Apart from the issue of who is to blame, I believe there is a much more worrying “dark hand” at play here.

It's hilarious that ex-PM Najib is saying that Pakatan Harapan would have spent the money since May 9. Of course, the government is entitled to spend the funds in the consolidated fund; the issue is that the funds should never be in the consolidated fund in the first place.

I wonder if the refunds not refunded to businesses had been included in the total yearly collection and therefore the actual GST collection was not as high as reported in the last three years as an additional RM18 billion which should be refunded has been included as the total collection.

If this is the case, then the shortfall between the GST and SST will be much less than previously forecast.

While the government and opposition argue who “songlap-ed” the amount, it is important to question why such a huge amount had not been refunded to businesses since GST's inception.

The answer lies not in where the money has been deposited - consolidated funds or trust fund - but the dirty tricks that the Customs Department seems to have learnt from their sibling the Inland Revenue Board (IRB).

It is quite obvious a methodical and deliberate method been used to delay GST refunds so that the government can use the funds for its spending shortfall.

Many taxpayers (especially companies) will testify that in recent years many companies in repayment situations has received letters from the IRB to so-call audit their tax computation to seek to vacate the repayment situation.

This was brought about by the fact that since the IRB had been corporatised, their amount of tax collection has been a key driving force - which is not the correct way.

Not only private companies but also GLCs and companies close to the ruling government then were targeted too (should we should be happy that there was no “pilih kasih”?) this even after the seven years’ time lapse had already passed.

The primary motive, in fact, the only motive was to just collect, collect and collect and deny repayment as much as possible.

In one case where I was helping out a company, the IRB lost the dividend voucher that the company had submitted (but the company had proof of acknowledgement) and then argued that their millions of refund due was not payable and worse, they claimed tax payable instead of tax on the dividend to offset tax payable. \

With the offset not happening now, the company would have to pay millions. The irony/hilarious bit was that if there was no dividend voucher, then there was no proof of dividend income and if the dividend income did not exist, therefore no tax is payable.

Eventually, this case was settled but the company lost out on some refunds, which I believe was the master plan all the while.

The current PM had told of this scenario before.

The repayments (GST or income tax) should be immediately paid as soon as the GST or income tax return is submitted. Any investigation can be done after if there is suspicion of fraud and a heavy penalty can be imposed.

Delaying refunds on the excuse there are issues to be investigated are dirty tricks to avoid paying the refund just because the government needs the money (which they are not entitled too).

Whether you leave the funds in the consolidated funds, in the trust fund or in a box in the PM's office or under the bed is a secondary issue.

Why were the refunds not paid as soon as possible? If that had happened there would not be a missing RM18 billion malarkey now. - Mkini