Nobody enjoys paying taxes, but it is a necessary evil. Countries cannot run properly without them. An examination of countries where there is corruption on a wide scale and limited progress will usually reveal a limited tax base. In developing countries, the purpose of taxation has progressed over the centuries, but even if those who govern have understood the importance of proper taxation, the public often has not. They perceive it as a feudal or neo-feudal imposition of those in power over those without power. Ironically it is our taxes, duly paid, that give us power. The American Revolution was fought on the slogan: “No taxation without representation.” Taxes give you a right to be heard. We complain about badly-maintained roads, power lines, and other utilities, but these are not only the failures of government; they are the failures of those who are governed too. How did we come by this taxing issue? The history of taxation dates back to the ancient Egyptians and through the ancient Greek and Roman empires. Taxes were raised usually to finance wars, only the ancient Greeks returned the money collected if they won, others didn’t. The ancient Egyptians even taxed cooking oil and their scribes went from house to house to ensure everyone was using enough of the commodity and not using cheaper cooking methods! In feudal Europe vassals paid aids usually to the lords of the manor. In England these were collected for special occasions, but in France, until the revolution of 1789, they were collected regularly for the lords of the manor, who themselves were exempt from taxes. In England Danegeld was paid to keep away the Danish raiders (Vikings), although it didn’t work in the long run. But taxation progressed until no-one was exempt. Taxes were based on wealth and income and at one time in England the richest paid 560 times more taxes than the poorest! Taxation didn’t always remain equitable. Excessive taxation was always a cause for controversy or revolt. The Lord Lieutenant of Coventry tried to raise his portion of the taxes by increasing those of the citizenry. His wife, Godiva, appealed on their behalf and his response resulted in her famous ride through the streets of Coventry covered by nothing but her long hair. The people had vowed not to look at her as she rode through the streets and stayed behind closed doors. The one man who broke the vow and peeped through a hole in his window shutters had the eye that saw her put out by fellow citizens. He lives on in memory and language as ‘Peeping Tom.’ Just see where taxation can get you! It is nowadays universally accepted that taxes are a necessary evil and have to be paid to develop the nation; and to maintain its utilities and services as well as the bureaucracy of state. Here, in Nepal, however, people do not generally accept the necessity for taxation. Evasion has become an acceptable norm. Partially the government is to blame and partially the attitude of the public. By and large taxes have to be reasonable to ensure a broad tax base. It is never a good policy to milk the fattest cow dry and leave the others to graze, but this is what happens. As a result, so I understand, there are only one hundred thousand regular tax payers in Nepal. It is a paradox of governance that one has to show results to justify taxes but one has to collect taxes to get results. Perhaps our governments have never bothered because they rely on donor money. The reliance has increased from government to government. Everyone is on the bandwagon because the world owes us a living; and so much so that everything reflects this attitude. Internal airfares cost more if you are foreign. The sight of a foreign face is enough for a taxi driver to state that the passenger should give an amount mutually agreed upon, or demanded by him, rather than according to the meter. Entering Bhaktapur is more expensive for non-Nepalis; and yet non-Nepalis restored it to become the tourist draw it is today. Consider the ethics of all this. When we go West or further East or North or South and use the facilities of other nations, we usually pay the same prices as citizens in those nations. Okay, lots of countries are much richer than ours, particularly in the developed world; but the citizens there pay taxes and out of those taxes a certain amount is given in foreign aid. We can criticise foreign governments and the high salaries of development personnel, their SUVs, and luxurious lifestyles, but when push comes to shove, it’s not our taxes that are footing the bills. Oh yes, there is a great deal of wastage and an unseemly proportion of aid gets siphoned back to the countries of origin, but the operative word here is ‘origin.’ I am not a great admirer of this strange colonisation by ‘development aid.’ It has made a once reasonably honest society corrupt and a once hard-working people lazy. This can be seen particularly in the cities where Oscar Wilde’s infamous line on “The influence of a permanent income on thought,” can be witnessed during the scores of lack-lustre conferences and seminars at five-star hotels. It is with us to stay until we decide that everyone should contribute, in no matter what small measure, to the building of the nation. Our taxes are an investment for the future and that is how they should be used. Finally, whatever the negative aspects of taxation are, the positive aspect is that paying taxes gives the payer a voice. We are entitled to representation and are no longer the prey to governments who want to tell us how to handle our internal affairs, whether it involves throwing out people who have been given refuge in this nation or signing away water resources on unfair terms. It also gives us the right to question the way we are governed, and this we should do constantly and consistently. Taxes give the public power in a democratic society. There should be no taxation without representation, but by the same token no representation without taxation. Fulfilling our responsibilities makes us free to question everything that is done by any government in the name of the people; and that we should never cease to do!