Fiki Ariyanti, Jakarta – Forbes magazine has again released a list of the richest people in the world, including from Indonesia. There are 50 Indonesian conglomerates included in the list, old faces as well as new.
With the emergence of this bourgeois in Indonesia, can the government push for more tax revenue from these people?
Coordinating Economics Minister Sofyan Djalil says that the government will absolutely not increase the tax rate on the very rich even though the government’s tax revenue target has topped more than 1,000 trillion rupiah (US$83.7 billion).
“No we have never thought about increasing [their] tax rate, it will stay exactly the same”, he told journalists at his office in Jakarta on Thursday December 4.
According to Djalil, the most important thing is the government’s efforts to extend the tax base. Broadening the taxpayer base has yet to touch on a number of different groups and sectors.
“If people are not yet paying tax they are the ones that need to be pursued. But if it’s rich people and they have already paid the correct tax, then yeah it’s a person’s right to get rich. What’s important is have they paid the correct tax yet”, explained Djalil. (Fik/Ahm)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the report was “Pemerintah Enggan Naikkan Pajak Konglomerat Indonesia yang Masuk Forbes”.]
