Privilege pardons

Thursday, 7 February 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The recent decision by the Sri Lankan Government to pardon the illegal import of vehicles and allow them to be registered with only a mild slap on the wrist of Rs. 1 million is unfair and unjustifiable in an atmosphere where hardworking people have to pay crippling taxes for basic vehicles.

Average people still find even the most indispensable cars beyond their reach due to tax regulations that border on the ridiculous. For example the Nano, which is billed as the world’s cheapest car, is around Rs. 1.7 million in Sri Lanka. Other popular options such as the Maruti, Swift, A-Star, and Viva are all above the Rs. 2 million mark. The larger Swift, which most families prefer, is well over Rs. 3 million, making it almost impossible for people with mid-range incomes to afford. Since most Indian cars have a lifespan of five years, most of the time they need to be resold just months after the lease is paid up, leaving the owner trapped in a circle of debt.

In the first eight months of 2012, registration of brand new and reconditioned cars declined 34.6 per cent to 25,489 units from 38,974 compared to the same period in 2011. According to data from the Department of Motor Traffic, registrations of three-wheelers have also dropped by 29.7 per cent to 62,481 in the first eight months of 2012, compared to 88,828 in the same period last year. Motorcycle registrations fell by 13.5 per cent to 142,509 in the first eight months of this year from 164,833 compared in same period of 2011. Overall, reports indicated, a 70 per cent decline in vehicle sales. Even local industry representatives are looking for better markets in places like Myanmar, showing how desperate the situation is for their survival.

The Government justification of an increasing trade deficit would be borne better by the people if they were not greeted to daily sights of Audis, BMWs, Benzes and a range of massive SUVs bullying down the streets of Colombo. The permits system, which was originally envisioned to allow lower paid public servants to afford a vehicle, has now been hopelessly subverted. Only the rich and the powerful can afford to purchase these permits and through their duty free mechanisms conveniently avoid paying the hefty dues that the rest of their countrymen are burdened with. Politicians in particular flout this privilege without stopping for a moment to understand the economic burdens that the masses deal with on a daily basis.

Opposition parties have noted that the latest “pardon play” will allow more than 5,000 illegally imported vehicles to be registered without paying millions in taxes. Since one would not even dare to take such a risk unless they are well-protected by high powers in Government, it is only one further step to assume that most of these luxury conveyances are owned by people who can well afford to receive the same treatment as the rest of the country. This blatant reward for law breakers, who should be hunted down and jailed but instead are being allowed to continue with barely a warning, is greatly disheartening to the people who actually obey the law.