Implementing government policies: trade bodies play positive role: PHMA

Central Chairman Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers and Exporters Association (PHMA) Dr Khurram Anwar Khawaja on Friday said that trade associations have always played positive and active role in implementing government policies. Talking to newsmen here he said that Ministry of textiles issued a DDT Order 2017-18 under notification No. 1(42-A)TID/17-TR-II for duty drawback of taxes on 12.12.2017 wherein the clause mentioning Association's role has been omitted.
Dr Khurram said the track record of associations' performance is evident that they had successfully implemented textile quota management without a single incidence of error or misappropriation of any kind whereas prior to that, misappropriation of billions of rupees were detected in quota management. Similar was the situation while implementing post-quota regime policies like research and development support, DLTL and even the DDT of 2016-17 under PM Textile Package, he said.
The associations also checked few bogus shipments, curtailed fraudulent exercises of some exporters during DLTL management and cancelled the membership of such exporters he pointed out. He further stated that this way associations saved national exchequer from fraudulent elements, although they had to face difficulties within business circles.
The Government he said should appreciate the transparent and prudent role of trade bodies in implementation of export promotion initiatives without allowing corruption or undue influence from any side whereas at the same time a number of export promotion initiatives of the Ministry of Commerce have been mishandled by the officials of government organizations, needless to mention their names.
In the wake of such productive and contributory services, the role of Associations must remain there in the DDT Order 2017-18. We therefore demand that required clause may be added to the notification under in question.