The world definitely knows that this figure is the creator of the tax that is now making people scream

Photo: Illustration/Tax Collection/Arie Pratama

HOLIDAY NEWS - Taxes are one of the policy instruments used by the government to increase state revenues. Through taxes, the state collects money from the people for transactions, ownership of assets or goods and so on. With tax money, the state can build many things for the welfare of the people.

However, on the other hand, tax bills often give people a headache, especially those in the middle class. Those whose income is not very large are subject to heavy taxes by the state. As a result, they became angry because they were considered objects of state blackmail. Even so, people's anger towards taxes should not only be shown to the state, but also to the creator of the first tax system, namely the Pharaohs of Ancient Egyptian Civilization. History records that around 3000 BC (BC), the Egyptian civilization led by Pharaoh created a system of state levies on the people, which is now known as the tax system.

The reason Pharaoh levied taxes was for development capital and maintaining social order. Pharaohs imposed taxes on goods, such as grain, textiles, labor, and various other commodities. Usually, the proceeds from tax collections are diverted to develop similar sectors. For example, if you levy a tax on rice, the tax proceeds are diverted to building rice barns.

Pharaoh did not apply an equal mechanism for tax collection, but an adjustment system. This means that the amount of tax is adjusted to the financial capacity of the tax object. Take for example when collecting farm taxes. Pharaoh set high taxes if the fields were very productive or had abundant harvests. Meanwhile, non-productive people are subject to lower taxes.

"Farms were taxed in different ways, and the rates depended on the productivity of the individual farm and the fertility and quality of the soil," historian Moreno Garcia told Smithsonian Magazine. In addition, the tax collection system also depended on the level of the Nile River. This is based on archaeologists' findings which revealed the existence of a nilometer system. This system takes the form of a line drawn on a ladder to measure the water level. If the water rises above the line, it means the field is flooded and yields decrease. This means that the tax charged is not that large. Vice versa.

All tax collections are used to fulfill the state treasury. All people are taxed without exception. When this happened, the burden on the people increased, especially since in Ancient Egypt there was also a forced labor system. This system requires all Egyptian citizens to work for the state on public projects, such as cultivating fields, mining and infrastructure development.

However, that doesn't mean there are no tax evaders. Samuel Blankson in A Brief History Of Taxation (2007) notes that many people don't want their income to be taxed, so they think about how to get around it.

The most common way, for example, is collusion between the registrar and the tax subject. Tax subjects often do not report their actual income to the registrar so that the tax deduction is small. Apart from that, tax subjects also often manipulate measurements, such as tricking the scales so that the tax deduction is low.

In the end, the legacy of collecting or deducting income initiated by the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt still survives today. The system he created became an inspiration for the state as an effective instrument for cash receipts. Now, all of this is commonly called taxes.

Dunia Pasti Tahu Sosok Ini Pencipta Pajak yang Kini Bikin Rakyat Menjerit

Target Pajak yang Tak Pernah Tembus — Foto: Ilustrasi/Pungutan Pajak/Arie Pratama

HOLIDAY NEWS - Pajak jadi salah satu instrumen kebijakan yang digunakan pemerintah untuk mendongkrak penerimaan negara. Lewat pajak, negara menarik uang dari rakyat atas transaksi, kepemilikan aset atau barang dan lain sebagainya. Dengan uang pajak, maka negara bisa membangun banyak hal untuk kesejahteraan rakyat.

Namun, di sisi lain, tagihan pajak seringkali membuat pening masyarakat, khususnya dari kelompok kelas menengah. Mereka yang penghasilannya tak begitu besar dibebankan pajak berat oleh negara. Alhasil, mereka pun menjadi geram karena dianggap objek pemerasan negara.

Meski begitu, kegeraman masyarakat atas pajak seharusnya tak hanya ditunjukkan kepada negara, tapi juga pencipta sistem pajak pertama, yakni Firaun dari Peradaban Mesir Kuno. Sejarah mencatat, sekitar 3000 Sebelum Masehi (SM) peradaban Mesir yang dipimpin oleh Firaun menciptakan sistem pungutan negara kepada rakyat, yang kini dikenal sebagai sistem pajak.

Alasan Firaun memungut pajak bertujuan untuk modal pembangunan dan menjaga ketertiban sosial. Firaun mengenakan pajak atas barang-barang, seperti gandum, tekstil, tenaga kerja, dan berbagai komoditas lain. Biasanya, hasil pungutan pajak dialihkan untuk membangun sektor serupa. Misalkan, jika menarik pajak atas beras, maka hasil pajaknya dialihkan untuk membangun lumbung beras.

Firaun tak menerapkan mekanisme sama rata dalam pemungutan pajak, tapi sistem penyesuaian. Maksudnya, besaran pajak disesuaikan dengan kemampuan finansial objek pajak. Ambil contoh ketika memungut pajak ladang. Firaun menetapkan pajak tinggi jika ladang tersebut sangat produktif atau memiliki hasil panen melimpah. Sementara yang non-produktif dikenakan pajak lebih rendah.

"Ladang-ladang dikenai pajak dengan cara yang berbeda-beda, dan tarifnya bergantung pada produktivitas ladang masing-masing dan kesuburan serta kualitas tanah," kata sejarawan Moreno Garcia kepada Smithsonian Magazine.

Selain itu, sistem pemungutan pajak juga bergantung pada sistem ketinggian Sungai Nil. Hal ini berdasarkan temuan arkeolog yang mengungkap adanya sistem nilometer. Sistem ini berupa garis yang digoreskan di sebuah tangga pengukur ketinggian air. Jika air naik di atas garis, maka berarti ladang tersebut dilanda kebanjikan dan penurunan hasil panen. Artinya, pajak yang dikenakan pun tak begitu besar. Begitu juga sebaliknya.

Seluruh pungutan pajak digunakan untuk pemenuhan kas negara. Semua rakyat dikenakan pajak tanpa terkecuali. Ketika ini terjadi, beban rakyat makin bertambah apalagi di Mesir Kuno juga terdapat sistem kerja rodi. Sistem ini membuat semua warga Mesir diharuskan bekerja kepada negara untuk proyek-proyek publik, seperti pengolahan ladang, penambangan, dan pembangunan infrastruktur.

Meski begitu, bukan berarti tak ada pengemplang pajak. Samuel Blankson dalam A Brief History Of Taxation (2007) mencatat, banyak orang tak ingin pendapatannya dipotong pajak, sehingga berpikir untuk mengakalinya.

Cara paling lazim, misalkan, kongkalikong antara pencatat dan subjek pajak. Subjek pajak sering tidak melaporkan penghasilan sebenarnya kepada pencatat supaya potongan pajaknya kecil. Selain itu, subjek pajak juga sering mengakali pengukuran, seperti mengakali timbangan agar potongan pajaknya rendah.

Pada akhirnya, warisan pemungutan atau potongan penghasilan yang dicetuskan oleh Firaun dari Mesir Kuno masih bertahan hingga sekarang. Sistem yang dicetuskannya pun menjadi inspirasi negara sebagai instrumen efektif penerimaan kas. Kini, semua itu lazim disebut pajak.