Taxpayers’ Rights in the Context of Democratic Governance: Tanzania
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Date
2002
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Abstract
This article discusses current tax reforms in Tanzania from the perspective of taxpayers'
rights. Tanzania has implemented economic reforms since the 1980s. The government
initially embraced business interests and adopted
laissez faire
policies that led to the near
collapse of the tax system and rampancy of corruption. These experiences seriously
impaired public trust and confidence in the government and the tax system. The
subsequent reforms, based on the 1991 Tax Commission report are the cornerstones of
tax reform in Tanzania and are a cause of concern. The formal legal system has become
marginal to administrative rules and enables bureaucratic choices in the interactions
between the state and economic actors. As a result, the tax reform has not corrected faulty
principles in state-society relations in taxation. It has taken a highly technical path. The
article argues that reforming a tax system on purely technical economic considerations is
not a viable option if democratic govemance and development are to be sustained.
The remaining parts of the article are organised as follows: in section two, the democratic
foundations and the rule of law in taxation is briefly discussed. In section three the legal
framework of taxation in Tanzania is assessed and examples are provided to indicate how
parliamentary plenary powers in taxation have supported undemocratic tax policy and
legislative practices. The final section addresses the issue of taxpayers' rights
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Taxpayers, Rights in the Context of Democratic Governance
Citation
Taxpayers’ Rights in the Context of Democratic Governance: Tanzania” IDS Bulletin vol. 33, No. 3 (July 2002) pp. 50-57