The gambling lottery went to the Ministry of Finance

Hülya K. ORUÇOĞLU

Citizens, crushed by financial discipline policies and strict savings practices, clinging to credit cards to make ends meet, literally embraced gambling. When the tax collection on gambling, which was 3.4 billion lira in 2020, reached 19.373 billion lira with an increase of 82 percent in the 10 months of this year, the royal lottery was to the Ministry of Finance. Tax expert Dr. Ozan Bingöl stated that the economic collapse in the country pushed people into the world of gambling and commented: “If this is the legal dimension, think about the illegal dimension.”

Ozan Bingöl gave the information: “According to data from the Ministry of Treasury and Finance, tax collection on gambling, which was 3,463 million lira in 2020, reached 6,91 million lira in 2021 and 10 one thousand 300 million liras in 2022.” The budget target for the gambling tax was set at 26 billion 278 million lire. “In the first ten months of the year, 19,373 million lire were collected as taxes on gambling,” he said.

TARGET OF 26 BILLION LIRAS

“People no longer dream of buying a house or a car with their hard work and sweat,” Bingöl stated that the demand for betting and gambling has also increased due to the economic collapse. Bingöl stated that in the period 2007-2023 tax revenue from gambling increased by 7948.7 percent. Bingöl stated that the tax burden on citizens is increasing and that in the first ten months of the year 3 trillion 391 billion liras were paid in taxes: “The lowest-income group will have to bear the greatest cost of fiscal discipline . policies that are not implemented correctly. What happens again will be at the expense of low-income people. “What we are experiencing is a manifestation of this,” he said.

‘This is where the problem begins’

Drawing attention to the tax system, Ozan Bingöl said: “According to BİSAM, the ‘poverty limit’ is 44,718 TL. When we accept this as a gross monthly salary, the employee will fall into the 27 percent tax bracket. After deducting the minimum wage exemption, 88,762 TL will be deducted annually as Income Tax. If you had earned this income by making money with money, you would have paid almost no taxes. Such a tax system is like a spider web that traps small flies but is infested with wasps. “The problem starts right here,” he said.

Ozan Bingol

“Who was 458 billion lira spent on?”

Ozan Bingöl said: “According to the data, in two years and ten months 458 billion 814 million 183 thousand liras were spent on expenditure items containing the phrases ‘other’ or ‘not included in the classification’, which were not included in the 2020 classification. budget.” We cannot see the breakdown of what is spent. Where was this money spent? These practices damage budget transparency, the principle of accountability in expenditures and leave the budget on the shelf. “But we must not forget that transparency in public administration is a necessity of democracy and an antidote to corruption,” he said.