A large number of companies doing businesses in the country do not pay tax to the Government.
Prime Minister, Peter O’Neill, said the government is aware of such companies and will soon be dealing with them appropriately.
When officially opening the 2017 Leaders’ Summit this morning in Port Moresby, O’Neill said such companies are not needed in the country.
He told the leaders that to eradicate such problems, they need to engage with businesses and companies to fight such illegal companies.
Governor for Oro, Garry Juffa, has also raised this issue many times and called for tax exemptions review in the country.
He said not just that exemptions should be reviewed but taxes due should be collected.
“Our tax system is a broken machine which is a leaking bucket with wide open holes with which we are attempting at fetching tax revenues.”
He added that countless advice to restructure the IRC and deploy tax collectors to target those who avoid taxes keep falling on deaf ears.
Juffa said a proper intelligence driven tax strategy managed and operated by elite well paid Tax Officers and Customs Officers will ensure maximum collection of taxes.
“Right now PNG is only collecting 30% of its taxes due. Forestry, fisheries and mining companies are not paying the right taxes and amounts,” he said.