IRS urged to intensify tax education

Kumasi, Aug 21, GNA - Mr Sampson Kwaku Boafo, the Ashanti Regional Minister, has appealed to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to educate the public consistently on their tax obligation. He said most people were ignorant of the existence of the variety of taxes they were supposed to pay and the personal tax relief they can enjoy.

This was contained in an address read for him at the launch of the 10th anniversary celebrations of the IRS Ladies Club in Kumasi on Friday.

The theme for the anniversary is "Expanding The Tax Base, A Challenge To The IRS Ladies".

Mr Boafo said lack of knowledge on the operations of the IRS as well as the amendment of the IRS Act called for a thorough and sustained education to enable the public, especially those in the informal sector, to pay their taxes.

He appealed to the ladies to get involved in workplace HIV/AIDS education to help reduce the spread of the pandemic. Miss Mary Asante, Assistant Commissioner in-charge of Information Technology who launched the anniversary, urged the ladies to improve their work attitude to enable the service achieve its set target. Mr James Anaman, Ashanti Regional Head of the IRS, expressed regret that people were not willing to honour their tax obligations voluntarily.

''Taxes are the only means that the government can generate revenue,'' he said and called on Ghanaians to resolve to pay their taxes promptly to ensure the speedy development of the nation.