Kojović: Betting shops owe the state 45 million, while hospitals don't even have paracetamol!

Following the release of information from the FBiH Tax Administration that betting shops owe the state 45.5 million KM in taxes, Predrag Kojović, president of Our Party, commented, stating that the inaction shown by the ruling SDA-HDZ-SBB coalition on this issue is unacceptable, according to a statement from Our Party, as reported by the Patria news agency.

-The published information about unpaid taxes by betting shops is yet another indisputable argument pointing to the need to reform our approach towards betting shops. It is unimaginable that organizers of games of chance, which are not socially beneficial activities, owe 45 million KM to the state, while that same state must borrow from the IMF to be able to pay pensions, or while hospitals do not have enough paracetamol.

The previous attitude of tolerance towards betting shops has shown that the state is working against itself and against the interests of the majority of citizens in this regard, and it is of utmost importance to change that attitude through a more decisive approach to tax collection, as well as through amendments to the Law on Games of Chance, Kojović said.

The Tax Administration also announced that the total turnover of betting shops in 2016, up to May, amounts to more than 582 million KM, of which 450 million KM was paid out in winnings up to 100 KM, which are not taxed.

-The non-taxation of those 450 million is economically inexplicable and immoral in a state where VAT is paid even on the most basic necessities such as bread and medicine, Kojović believes, adding that Our Party will insist in the Federal Parliament on its initiative to tax winnings from games of chance, as well as all other income not derived from work, at a rate of at least 20%.

-We have submitted an initiative for a single tax rate for betting shops. In fiscally just states, this type of income, which is not the result of work but of capital and speculation, is always taxed at a much higher rate than that applied to income earned through work.

Our initiative envisions that the budgetary funds thus generated, as well as part of the funds intended for financing political parties, be directed to the Maternity Fund. Given that we have had the opportunity to see how strong the influence of casino owners is on the ruling coalition, it is crucial that we exert pressure on this issue together with citizens, public opinion, and the NGO sector, which also supports this and similar initiatives, Kojović added.

Kojović said that the goal of this initiative is to create a social consensus that the interests of mothers, users of the health and education sectors, who lack basic infrastructure, are more important than the enrichment of betting shop owners and their political protectors.

-It is unimaginable that someone refuses to pay a debt to the budget, even though it is mandatory and the state has the power to force them to do so, while on the other hand hospitals lack CT scanners or MRIs that are vital for citizens. With 45 million, one could buy about 20 MRIs or 90 scanners, or, for example, build about 20 new schools, Kojović concluded.