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E-levy: GH¢241m allocation unnecessary – Franklin Cudjoe to gov't

Franklin Cudjoe, Founding President of IMANI Africa and social commentator, has indicated that the government's allocation of GH¢241,933,000 in the 2022 budget statement and economic policy for some services in the implementation of the controversial electronic transaction collection is "unnecessary".

Franklin Cudjoe with Nana Addo

The government as part of its 2022 budget economic policies intends to impose a 1.75% levy on all electronic transactions.

As part of the policy implementation plan, the government allotted GH¢241,933,000 to be spent on services.

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta announced a new levy to be charged by the government in 2022 on all electronic transactions to widen the tax net and rope in the informal sector.

"It is becoming clear there exists an enormous potential to increase tax revenues by bringing into the tax bracket, transactions that could be best defined as being undertaken in the ‘informal economy,” Ofori-Atta said on Wednesday, November 17, 2021, when he presented the 2022 budget statement in Parliament.

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"After considerable deliberations, the government has decided to place a levy on all electronic transactions to widen the tax net and rope in the informal sector. This shall be known as the 'Electronic Transaction Levy or E-Levy'".

The proposed E- levy if approved by Parliament will come into effect on February 1, 2022.

The tax has since been met with mixed reactions, with Ghanaians kicking against it and stressing that it will only place an extra burden on their finances.

The minority in parliament has also announced that it will not support approval for the proposal.

Franklin Cudjoe in a Facebook post regarding the policy proposal wondered why the government is compounding issues over the E-levy.

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He described as "unnecessary" the government's allocation of GH¢241,933 in the budget.

He wrote: "I wonder why the government is compounding issues over the E-levy with its projected GHS 241m in admin fees. It is unnecessary. We pay too much to collect taxes in GH."

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