Bring Customs Dept’s demand for service tax arrears to court, MCMA told

SIBU (Jan 1): The Malaysian Chinese Medical Association (MCMA) has been asked to bring the Customs Department’s demand for service tax arrears purportedly due from traditional and complementary healthcare services since 2018 to court for adjudication.

In suggesting this, Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) Central assistant organising secretary Wong Ching Yong pointed out that Customs has no legal basis to collect an indirect tax, namely sales and services, retrospectively unless the department has sufficient evidence that there is fraud, willful default and negligence on the part of the taxpayer.

“As such, I advise MCMA to consult tax experts and legal counsel to ascertain if such directive from Customs is legal. I strongly encourage MCMA to bring the matter to court for adjudication.

“I am happy to advise them as tax consultant on pro bono basis. I am willing to help look for senior tax lawyers in Sibu to assist,” he told a press conference here yesterday during the SUPP Dudong mobile service counter at Farley Café.

Wong, who is SUPP Dudong branch chairman, said it was unacceptable and inappropriate to classify Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in the same category as ‘Night Club, Dance Hall, Cabaret, Health and Wellness Centres, Massage Parlours, Public Houses and Beer Houses’.

He reasoned that this was because the Health Ministry (MoH) also provides TCM services in several government hospitals, with multiracial patients receiving the treatment in Malaysia.

He then cited MoH’s portal where Sarawak General Hospital is listed as one of several hospitals in the country offering traditional and complementary medicine services.

Furthermore, he said TCM is being taught in universities locally such as TAR University and International Medical University, as well as abroad.

He also pointed out that Malaysia has legislation in the form of the Traditional and Complementary Medicine Act 1976.

“In the eyes of the relevant department’s ‘Little Napoleon,’ is traditional medicine, including Chinese medicine, deemed to be less important to warrant such discriminatory treatment?

“The bewilderment felt by traditional Chinese medicine practitioners can be easily imagined and are understandable.”

Wong explained that service tax is a form of value-added tax collected from customers when they settle bills for services or goods purchased, which is the point of sales.

“If it is collected from customers after five years, how can traditional healthcare providers recover and collect the outstanding indirect taxes?

“Finding the customers is already a big challenge. Even if they can be located, do you think customers will be willing to pay the purported service tax dated 2018?

“The clients might view it as extortion,” Wong highlighted.

He also took Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying to task over her recent statement that the matter was not a sudden decision by the current government, but has been applicable since 2018.

“I can say she did not do her homework because she said it has actually been implemented since 2018.

“Absolutely nonsense, because they do not have a correct categorisation for Chinese physicians. Therefore, she did not do her homework.”

Among those present was SUPP Dudong vice-chairman Dr Wong Chya Wei