The recent decision by the prime minister to dismiss over two dozen senior officers from Pakistan Customs and the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) due to allegations of compromised integrity and competence, as reported by intelligence agencies, has stirred significant discontent among the officers.
These officers are now expressing concerns about alleged harassment and media scrutiny, cautioning against its detrimental impact on achieving revenue targets just two months before the fiscal year’s end.
The crackdown specifically targets Grade 21 and 22 officers identified in intelligence reports as key figures in a system that allegedly facilitates extensive smuggling and revenue loss.
The government has sidelined senior Customs officers suspected of involvement or association with smuggling and under-invoicing, which have led to significant revenue losses. Intelligence agencies have uncovered the secret mechanisms behind revenue leakage in FBR field formations.
Moving forward, failure to implement oversight mechanisms for these key Customs positions post-shakeup could jeopardize efforts to counter smuggling and revenue evasion facilitated by handpicked Customs collectors.
Customs officers are reportedly engaging in corrupt practices such as extortion for not filing FIRs, provisional release of imports at undervalued rates, and benefiting from transit goods smuggling back into Pakistan.
To address pervasive corruption, there are suggestions to replace Grade 21 and 22 Customs officers with Pakistan Administrative Service officers based on integrity. This could potentially improve revenue collection in the country.
