The high costs are continuing … a new crisis that doubles the burdens of the Lebanese!

Between the lines of the new budget project approved by the Council of Ministers, crises are hiding that exceeds numbers and legal articles. Between a new tax that will be added on the import bill, and shy amendments to public sector salaries, this project opens the door wide for more economic shrinkage and pressure on the Lebanese citizen who has not yet come out of the high cost and deterioration tunnel.

In this context, the head of the Lebanese companies gathering and the economist in the name of Al -Bawab, in an interview with “Leipnon Deepite”, asserts that the budget project approved by the Council of Ministers and sent it to the Parliament is facing, frankly, two basic problems.

He explains that “the first problem is the subject of the tax by 3% on all imported goods, this tax is unprecedented and unacceptable, because it will actually rise to 5% after downloading the prices, and traders, of course, will add it to the prices of goods, and they know in advance that they will not be able to recover them, neither through income tax or otherwise.”

He adds: “Even in the case of income tax, it cannot be used or retrieved because it is much greater than the value of income tax, and the income tax was usually ranging between 180 and 200 million dollars, while this tax alone will cost about 700 million dollars in the coming year, or more than three times the income tax, and therefore, merchants will not be able to recover it, as 3% on import equals more than 20% of the net profit It is illogical and unrealistic, therefore, this measure is rejected and we will be clearly against it. We as economic bodies, and we have issued several data in this regard. ”

He points out that “the second problem is the subject of wage correction, there is no doubt that the state has already started with steps to correct and increase wages, but that remains insufficient and must be improved more.”

He notes that “it is likely that with time, and perhaps with the next budget, there will be a new wage amendment, especially if a surplus appears in the budget that can be used for this purpose, and the correction is assumed to focus in particular on the wages of the military sector, and the government is seeking to obtain external support, for example from Qatar Or the United States, to secure additional revenues that enable it to pay greater salaries to the military, because not increasing salaries for the public sector will lead to major problems, including strikes, sit -ins and road cutting, which will harm the government and the economy alike.

“This is the primary picture of the budget, of course, its details will be shown in the sessions of the wealth of money and the budget before the final vote, and there are many outstanding points that need accurate follow -up.”

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