Reduce taxes: GUTA to NPP

The Ghana Union of Traders (GUTA) wants the incoming New Patriotic Party (NPP) government to immediately review the current tax regime when it takes over power from January 2017.

The NPP, whilst in opposition, promised to scrap several taxes and reduce others to enable businesses to have the space to expand and employ more people.

GUTA has long been agitating for the removal of the Common External Tariffs, reduction in import duties, and the scrapping of the 17.5 per cent VAT.

GUTA spokesman Joseph Paddy, speaking to OTECNEWS, said: “Issues that came up throughout their campaigning was the proposals we gave to them and that is what we expect from them, that is, we need the dollar to come down and be pegged equal to the cedi. The rate at which the dollar was appreciating against the cedi was something that was not good to write home about.

“We also said the import duties were too high: you buy an item for about two dollars and you pay import duty of about four dollars, so if you import goods of about $100,000, you’re paying duty of about $50,000, which we think no businessman can grow with this policy that is in place.”

According to Mr Paddy “the expectations of businessmen is very high and then we pray and hope that the new government will meet the demands and the needs of businessmen because when we grow, government grows, because government does not do business; government depends on the private sector. So, government should give us good policies to grow and when we grow he will realise his revenues and they can develop the country, so that’s what we are expecting from government”.

In his view, one way of helping businesses to thrive in the country is to “reduce taxes” adding: “That’s what we’ve been singing and drumming and have been asking the former government to do. Like the Special Levy – it’s not necessary, take it off, it’s not helping our businesses.”

Source, OTECMEWS