Sunday, August 6, 2017

Official Indonesian Taxation Authority Twitter Account

Sydney, 7 August 2017


The reminder from tax office to a taxpayer should be personal and not for public consumption, unless the law allows it to be announced publicly. What tax authority has done to Raffi Ahmad may indicate he has not include his new car on his last year's tax return. We all know that tax return is highly confidential.

The taxpayer may be ashamed and disgraced by this twit. If he is a businessman, he may be discredited by his business partners. If the twit is true, the tax office should follow the bureaucracy to send the notice. If it is just a gentle greet (not a really true notice), or if it is scripted and actually a part of tax campaign, it is still wrong and inappropriate.

Probably, the operator of official twitter account of Indonesian Taxation Authority was trying to be informal to the audience. However, as government's official institution, there are some strict principals that cannot be breached. Previously, Indonesian Taxation Authority was widely criticised after making a sexism joke.