General News of Tuesday, 25 January 2022
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2022-01-25E-levy will not do any good for Ghana – Elizabeth Ofosu Agyare
Elizabeth Ofosu Agyare
Parliament resumes sitting
E-levy to be reintroduced in Parliament
But the NDC MP says it will not be good for the country
Elizabeth Ofosu Agyare, MP, Techiman North, has reiterated that the
Read full articleElectronic Transaction Levy also known as E-levy, will not do any good for the country.
According to her, if gold, cocoa, timber, and other natural resources which Ghana is endowed with could not save the country, then E-levy is not Ghana’s saviour.
She, however, noted that E-levy has a negative impact on the economy, so, the NDC Minority in Parliament has since dissociated itself from the levy.
Ofosu Agyare indicated that the NDC MPs have resolved to present all 137 Members of Parliament to vote against the E-levy Bill whenever it comes up in Parliament.
“We members of Parliament on the Minority side are for the interest of the country. We should bear in mind that a simple majority is needed for the passage of the Bill. So, if all the 138 members of the Majority are present on the day, the Bill can be approved. But even if that should happen, we the NDC MPs have washed our hands off the E-levy and its consequences”, she said.
“It is a tax that will not do any good for the country. If gold, cocoa and other natural resources couldn’t save us, will this do so?” Elizabeth Ofosu Agyare questioned at the NDC Town Hall meeting in Kumasi on Monday.
The MP further indicated that, the E-levy when passed will collapse businesses in the country.
She explained, a hundred thousand individuals in the mobile money business may lose their jobs, since many will find alternatives of transferring money.
The Minority, therefore, proposed that government consider retrieving the 12 billion cedis lost to corruption in 2020 as stated in the Auditor-General’s report to make up for the lost revenue.
“Over 12 billion cedis, according to the Auditor-General has been lost to corruption and irregularities. We will tell the government to go after the money which is more than the projected revenue from the E-levy. Government will not get the projected amount since many will refuse to use the service when the Bill is passed,” Elizabeth Ofosu Agyare stressed.
