21 New Taxes Meant To Frighten People Out Of Business - Malik Basintale Tackles NPP

Political firebrand and Deputy Communications Officer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) Malik Basintale has disagreed with assertions by Government communicators that the 10% tax slapped on all bet winnings is a way of discouraging people, especially the youth from engaging in gambling.

He stressed that that line of argument is untenable because Government is neck deep in gambling (betting) by permitting betting companies to operate and operate gambling through the National Lotteries Authority.

Mr Basintale is of the opinion that if Government is truly against betting, it can close down the entire gambling system rather than imposing a hefty tax on people who engage it with the explanation that it will frighten people away from the practice.

He insisted that the argument that the tax will discourage the youth from betting is not convincing enough.

He wondered whether the Government’s introduction of taxes on businesses is meant to discourage people from engaging in business if taxes serve as a form of discouragement to people as they have claimed.

“The Gaming Commission Act said gambling is a game of chance and a game to have fun. The government that brought this Act can repeal it at any point in time.

Government is the biggest gambler in the country. The Government through the lotteries authority manages gambling in this country.

The president appoints a CEO to gamble with the people of this country. The government doesn’t see the need to repeal that Act. The Government doesn’t see the need to close down the entire lottery system. But they think that by imposing punitive taxes on this service, they will move a lot of people out of it? He quizzed on Citi TV’s The Point of View programme.

He emphasized that gambling is legal in Ghana and taxing bet winnings on moral grounds when the Government can abolish gambling altogether is unacceptable.

“How does this tax frighten any youth out of this betting? The 21 new taxes you [Government] introduced, was that your intention? To frighten businesses? If you think you don’t support the position of young people in this country betting, then abolish it so that we will know that you don’t like it. It should be clear.

The moral definition or the moral explanation to this doesn’t fly for me because there’s a law backing it,” he added.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Youth Authority (NYA) Pius Hadzide, on the show, defended the introduction of the tax as a way of discouraging betting among the youth and raising revenue for development. He insisted that taxing addictive practices like betting has been proven to be effective in discouraging people from such undertakings.