Transport Ministry to support GRA to combat revenue leakages

Accra, Dec. 7, GNA - Mrs Dzifa Attivor, Deputy Minister of Transport on Monday expressed disdain about the massive leakage of revenue through illegal car registration syndicates and called on stakeholders to clamp down on the perpetrators of the crime.

She said the cost of revenue fraud to the State was high hence the essence for concerted efforts to help reverse the situation. Mrs Attivor was speaking at a meeting with members of the Anti-Revenue Leakages Monitoring Team of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) in Accra, who called on her to brief the Ministry of their activities. She observed that multiple and illegal registration of vehicles was affecting efforts of the country to combat crime, because most often the identity of the culprits and the means of transport they used could not be traced by the security agencies.

The Minister said inability of agencies of her Ministry to track the true identity, origin or state of vehicles involved in motor accidents made it difficult to get the true picture of the phenomenon. Mrs Attivor welcomed any form of collaboration between the Ministry and the GRA to combat activities leading to revenue loss to the State. "What ever the Ministry can do to seal all revenue leakages we will do to flash out the culprits," she stressed.

Mr Thomas Mills, Leader of the team said members were collaborating with personnel of the Customs Division of the GRA and the Ghana Police Service to combat the illegal car registration syndicate and the unlawful importation of vehicles into the country, which had caused huge revenue loss to the State.

He said the vehicles impounded were registered illegally or did not attract import duties while some had their chassis numbers altered. Mr Mills said the shady deals of the syndicate were being carried out in connivance with some licensing personnel. He sought the assistance of the Ministry to help investigate the illegal activities of the syndicate, who duplicate original documents of vehicles to cover their fake activities.

Mr Mills said any registered vehicle which had not gone through proper custom procedure was not valid.

He stressed: "It is illegal and criminal for anyone to register a vehicle without going through custom procedures." Mr Mills asked the insurance companies to do proper background checks of vehicles to assist in nipping in the bud the irregular activities. 7