Speaking to business leaders during a post-event reflection on the Kwahu Business Forum, Mahama emphasized the importance of fairness and transparency in taxation to encourage compliance and support economic growth.
“I noticed that when the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) was introduced, everyone applauded, you applauded the GRA.
The GRA is your friend. I can assure you they are your friend, and they will become even more business-friendly,” he said, highlighting the need for a cooperative relationship between the tax authority and the private sector.
Mahama criticized the idea of imposing more taxes, calling it counterproductive. “I believe the solution to our situation is not to pile on more taxes.
The solution is to make taxes more transparent and fair to encourage greater compliance. If you keep adding more taxes, people will inevitably find ways to avoid them,” he explained.
He cited the controversial Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) introduced by the previous government as a cautionary example.
“That was the same argument we made against the previous government’s introduction of the E-Levy. We warned that people would find ways to avoid paying it — and they did.
Instead of addressing the financial challenges as promised, people simply withdrew funds from their digital wallets and reverted to using cash to sidestep the new levy,” Mahama said.
Source: mynewsgh.com
