I will scrap COVID-19 levy and other nuisance taxes – Alan Kyerematen

The presidential candidate of the Movement for Change, Alan Kyerematen, says it makes no sense for the government to keep charging the COVID-19 levy.

In an interaction with the media, the former Trade and Industry Minister stated that Ghana has become an expensive country to conduct business in due to various nuisance taxes.

He has promised substantive reductions and the abolition of taxes to make Ghana the most affordable country for doing business.

He posited that Ghana’s ability to deal with corruption and the amount of money it will save will be enough to take Ghana out of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Mr. Kyerematen said, "All the money is going into people’s pockets. If you know the level of corruption, it is not just about the NDC but also the NPP. So we have no choice but to bring taxes down. I am an economist and a lawyer, but I think like an engineer. You cannot have an enterprise economy or a competitive economy with high taxes."

"It is not going to help the private sector. And so, when we talk about low taxes, GTP is saying that with the kind of tax regime I am proposing, Ghana will have the lowest tax regime in the whole of ECOWAS during an Alan presidency."

He added that he has been specific about his quest to reduce nuisance taxes, asking, "How is it that we are still charging the COVID-19 levy? Does it make sense? You are charging a disinfection levy. What are you disinfecting? So what are those taxes for? It is a lazy way of making up for failed policies in terms of making sure that leakages do not occur. There should be no excuses. Those taxes have no place in our economic environment, and that is why I have been bold to say, I will scrap them."

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