NGO demands probe

…. Investigate offshore accounts holders

ActionAid Zambia has demanded immediate investigations of high network-worth individuals, corporate bodies and public officers operating offshore accounts and investing in tax havens.

Country director ActionAid country director Nalucha Ziba has since urged government to take criminal action against all those involved in illegal financial dealings to increase transparency in the tax system by introducing a public register of beneficial ownership.

“The recent revelations in the Paradise Papers about how rich and powerful individuals, politicians and multinational corporations use tax havens to shift profits from one jurisdiction to another, echoes our demands about the need to address illicit financial flows,”

She said those engaged in illegal financial dealings should be criminalised.

Mrs Ziba said government must take action to increase transparency in Zambia’s tax system, starting with a public register of a beneficial ownership.

“This policy would reveal the true owners of anonymous companies and trusts, shining a light on the tax. In addition, government should close all the loopholes that allow for tax avoidance. “This includes reviewing and renegotiating outdated double taxation agreement to include good strong provisions such as higher caps on WHT taxes,” Mrs Ziba said. She said on the international stage, the Zambian government should push for an Intergovernmental tax body that would seek to fairly and transparently address tax grievances.

She said all the loopholes that allow tax avoidance needed to be closed and that government needed to thoroughly investigate all high net-worth individuals and corporate bodies that were operating offshore accounts.

“The recent revelations in the Paradise Papers about how rich and powerful individuals, politicians and multinational corporations use tax havens to shift profits from one jurisdiction to another, echoes our demands about the need to address illicit financial flows.

Although it is not illegal to move profits to a tax haven, the challenge is that individuals and business entities hide profits in tax havens far away from the tax authorities in the countries where the profits are generated.