Former FBR Chairman Shabbar Zaidi Says He Faced Pressure During PTI Government

Islamabad: Former Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman Shabbar Zaidi has said he remained under pressure during the government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and was unable to implement key reforms he wanted to introduce.

Speaking on [Samaa TV](https://www.samaa.tv?utm_source=chatgpt.com), Zaidi said he had attempted to revise property valuation tables, register traders, and link banking transactions with the tax system, but those efforts could not materialize.

He revealed that he had proposed removing 10,000 to 15,000 employees from the FBR, arguing that the institution did not require such a large workforce. “I suggested they should stay home and not come to offices, but none of these reforms happened,” he said.

Zaidi stated that due to health concerns and family advice, he returned to Karachi after stepping away from the role. He claimed that PTI founder Imran Khan repeatedly pressured him to return to the FBR, but after seeing the same issues persist, his health worsened again and he moved back to Karachi. He also clarified that he never formally resigned from the FBR.

Discussing Pakistan’s governance structure, Zaidi said successive governments claim they will reduce the cash economy, reform real estate, and curb smuggling, but eventually become part of the same system. “In Pakistan, change or revolution is only a slogan. Anyone who tries to challenge the system is pushed out,” he remarked.

He added that Pakistan’s tax collection has reached around Rs14 trillion over the last decade due to economic expansion, but tax-to-GDP ratio still remains around 10 percent. According to him, the government’s biggest failure is the inability to improve tax collection.

Zaidi further argued that the FBR should not have arrest powers, warning that giving more authority to tax officials only increases corruption. He also said industrialists and traders should be treated separately in policymaking.

The former FBR chief claimed both Imran Khan and former Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa supported him, adding that he perhaps received more support from the PTI founder than anyone else.