Parliamentary hopeful slams GH¢50,000 tax clearance cost as excessive

An independent parliamentary candidate in the Ayawaso West Wuogon constituency, Abdul Rauf Mumuni Abugri, has disclosed that he had to spend over GH¢50,000 to secure his tax clearance certificate in order to file and contest the parliamentary election.

He wondered why it would cost so much to secure a tax clearance certificate to contest a parliamentary election when the cost of filing to contest the parliamentary election is GH¢10,000.

He disclosed this in an interview on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM with host Kwabena Agyapong.

The candidate said the original amount he was required to pay was GH¢80,000 but later had to pay a little over GH¢50,000 before he got his tax clearance to file to contest in the election.

“The filing fee was GH¢10,000, but what cost so much money was the tax clearance certificate. It is unreasonable to pay that amount for the tax clearance certificate.

"Applying for a tax clearance as an individual and not linked to a business should not cost such an amount of money. When you apply for a tax clearance certificate as an individual and the amount is GHC 80,000, that is extreme and expensive. The filing fee is GH¢10,000, and yet the clearance fee is so much.”

He explained that when contesting the parliamentary election, the tax certificate rates you as a first-class citizen and has several components, including a betting tax and an airport levy, among other outrageous levies.

“The tax clearance certificate should not have cost over GH¢5,000, but it cost over GH¢50,000, and that is very bad.

"That is the reality. I don’t know if it was a strategy to harass me not to contest, but I want to assure you that I will contest the parliamentary election. I will not back down,” he added.