KABUL – An investigation by TOLOnews has found that the Taliban have beencollecting taxes from the business community in Ghazni province over thepast six months.
Reports indicate that Taliban officials even take tax from businessmen inthe provincial capital.
Meanwhile a Taliban spokesman has said that the group successfullycollected over three million AFs from Ghazni alone this year.
In addition local officials have said that the Taliban has arrested dozensof locals after they refused to pay tax to the militants.
Ahmad Farid Omari is a local businessmen in Ghazni who was forced by theTaliban to pay 200,000 rupees in illegal tax.
Omari was initially asked for 400,000 rupees in tax. But he managed toconvince the Taliban to accept 200,000 rupees.
“Taliban operate just five kilometers from the city which belongs to thecapital of Ghazni, Taliban told us to pay the money in that place and saidwe will receive a slip for the amount paid, but we did not go there to paythe money; Taliban’s men came in from the city who we did not recognize andwe paid the money,” said Omari.
The business community is outraged over the issue, saying they are payingtax both to government and the Taliban.
But the Taliban have said the group collected the tax to ensure security oftrade convoys on the highway.
“No businessmen are left in Ghazni who have not paid the tax, even thereare claims that members of the provincial council have also paid themoney,” said Hassan Reza Yusufi, secretary of Ghazni provincial council.
Local officials say that from the total of eighteen districts in Ghazni,Nawah, Zankhan, Gero, Ajristan, Gelan, Dahyak, Andar, Waeez and Khogyaniare dealing with high security threats.
Despite the complicated security situation, there are people in Ghazni whoare optimistic about their future.
“We tried to create a peaceful (environment) for youths in Ghazni,” saidMohammad Zamir Hadad, a computer science student in Ghazni.
“In some places, the security condition is not good,” said a resident ofGhazni, Narendra Singh.
“We hope that Allah helps our nation to live in peace,” said anotherstudent, Sayed Jan Agah Bakhtyar.