Minority Leader criticizes government's failure to abolish E-Levy, other taxes

Dr. Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the Minority Leader, has criticised the Government’s failure to abolish the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-Levy) in the Mid-Year Fiscal Policy Review of the Budget Statement and Economic Policy of the Government for 2024 Financial Year.

He made the remarks on the floor of Parliament after the presentation of the Mid-Year Budget Review Statement by Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, the Minister of Finance.

Dr. Forson noted that what Ghanaians were expecting in the Mid-Year Budget Review was for the Government to abolish some taxes such as the E-Levy, which was suffocating the people in recent times, but the Government had missed the opportunity to do so.

He said the Mid-Year Budget Review address, which was typical of the Government was uninspiring, bereft of new ideas, gives no hope, and fails to offer a road map for addressing the numerous problems facing the people of Ghana.

“This Mid-Year Review leaves many people disappointed and uninspired. It gives no hope to the ordinary Ghanaian that anything will be done to change the unbearable hardships that confront the people of Ghana,” he stated.

Speaking to the Parliamentary Press Corps after the presentation of the Mid-Year Budget Review, Dr Forson said in the last eight years, the Akufo-Addo Government had burdened Ghanaian businesses and individuals with high tax regime such as: E-Levy, COVID Levy, an effective VAT rate of 22 percent, a distorted VAT regime, a betting tax and a “borla” tax (Sanitation Levy).

He also cited high taxes on petroleum products, an emission Levy, high import ductus, burdensome fees, and charges across all sectors and over 40 new taxes.

Dr Forson reiterated that these burdensome taxes had made Ghana unattractive for investment; saying “As a result, many businesses are relocating from Ghana to Togo and Ivory Coast among others”.

He said Ghana had lost so many job opportunities as a result of the relocation of businesses.

The Minority Leader said this adds to the already high unemployment situation because the Government failed to create jobs.

He said as a result of high import duties and levies at the nation’s ports, Ghana was no longer an attractive or gateway to west Africa.

The Minority Leader said the nation’s ports, particularly the Tema Port had lost almost 50 percent of its traffic with further job losses.

“Living in Ghana is now exceedingly difficult as the cost of living has become unbearable. Many Ghanaians are unable to put food on the table for their families and loved ones. People can simply not make ends meet. ‘Krom aye shi. Aye shi-shi-shi’!”

He said high food prices were one of the major problems facing Ghana today; yet, this Mid-Year Review did not provide a roadmap to arrest the escalating food prices.

He noted Planting for Food and Jobs was a monumental failure despite the billions of Ghana cedis that had been spent so far; declaring that “the greatest threat to our National Security today is youth unemployment and food insecurity”.

He said these two factors were fuelling the loss of confidence in the nation’s democracy, as revealed in the recent Afrobarometer report on Ghana.

Dr Forson said at the very least, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Minority Caucus expected nothing less than the removal or abolishing of taxes such as the E-Levy, COVID Levy, betting tax, borla tax, emission Levy, VAT on domestic consumption of electricity and addressing the distortions of the VAT regime.

He said the Akufo-Addo and Bawumia Government would be remembered as the Government that left behind a bankrupt economy, default (Yentumi ntua) economy, haircut economy, debt-riddled economy, over tax economy, high inflationary economy, and high food inflation economy.

He said the NDC and the Minority in parliament were aware of the hopelessness of the youth, who could not count on the Government for jobs and the suffering of the ordinary Ghanaian.

Dr. Forson also mentioned the unbearable hardship confronting Ghanaian businesses and the collapsed State-Owned Enterprises such as the Ghana Cocobod and “the insolvent of Bank of Ghana”.

“The rich have become middle class, the middle class has become poor and the poorer has become poorer with the World Bank estimating that one-third (33.3 percent) of Ghana’s population expected to be in poverty by 2025,” Dr Forson said.

He said the high tax regime that had forced businesses to relocate from Ghana and had fuelled high unemployment and poor governance.

“The NDC’s pledge is to confront these challenges head-on beginning January 2025,” Dr Forson said.