Business News of Tuesday, 1 February 2022
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2022-02-01E-Levy: Government faced with serious liquidity challenges - Kusi-Boafo
play videoFinance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta
Parliament at an impasse over E-Levy
E-Levy to shore up revenue, create jobs - Ken Ofori-Atta
Minority, Citizens oppose E-Levy Bill
Thomas Kusi-Boafo, CEO of the Public Sector Reforms Secretariat, has indicated that, the government of Ghana under the leadership of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, is facing serious liquidity challenges,
Read full articleand the only way to solve it is to impose a 1.75% tax on all electronic transactions by way of the controversial E-Levy.
Speaking on Kessben FM’s ‘Amansan Ntie’ programme, Kusi-Boafo noted that the revenue mobilization of the government is very low, therefore, it has created a huge fiscal deficit, and until the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy) is passed, the government of Ghana will abandon the programmes it is pursuing.
“So, Ghanaians must make a choice; we don’t like free education, stop employing our children, don’t increase wages and salary, Kusi-Boafo trigger the sacking of workers…and I’ll do so and there will be no E-levy for anybody.
“There will be no road for you, schools will not be built, there will be no payment of tier two for workers…
“Ghanaians want the government to do all these things and as a listening government…it is on the government to help especially people of Apiate so that God will bless us. This is the time we must demonstrate that we are redeeming the country,” Kufo-Boafo explained in Twi.
He noted that, the issues surrounding the E-levy should not be about NPP and NDC arguments with blows but rather approached with a 'Ghana first' mentality because Ghana must be redeemed by every Ghanaian.
“E-levy will give us over GH¢6 billion and that is enough to cushion all these social interventions. That is the easy way to generate taxes, it is readily available.
“Another way is direct Chiefs to pay some revenues to the government when they sell lands in their community but that will go through a long process with so much legislation, by the time it is passed free education would have been collapsed, no health insurance, no road infrastructure etc,” he said.
He, therefore, charged those opposing the E-levy to direct government where it can get the GH6 billion that is needed for the infrastructural projects and when it is done, “E-levy will be abandoned”.
Watch the video below:
About the E-Levy
On November 17, 2021, Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, announced the introduction of a 1.75% tax on all electronic transactions during the 2022 budget presentation before parliament.
According to him, this new directive forms part of strategies to widen the country’s tax net.
He added that the 1.75% tax is also to enhance financial inclusion and protect the vulnerable in the country.
The E-levy since its announcement by the Finance Minister has received public backlash from some Ghanaians especially Members of Parliament from the Minority Caucus.
At a recent press conference, the Minister outlined a number of modifications to the Bill and announced that the government continued to engage stakeholders on the bill ahead of resubmission before MPs.
