Former President John Dramani Mahama has given assurance that the main opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) will abolish the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) Act if the party wins the 2024 general election.
He said even though the NDC is not against new taxes, the party will not condone “burdensome taxes like the E-Levy.”
“We in the NDC do not oppose taxation as a principle. We will not be pretentious and couch fanciful slogans to condemn the principle of taxation like the NPP did in the past. We are, however, implacably opposed to distortionary and burdensome taxes like the E-Levy that only force Ghanaians to endure more suffering.
“A new National Democratic Congress government, God willing and with the votes of the sovereign people of Ghana in 2025 will repeal the E-Levy Act,” former President Mahama stated when he delivered an address on the theme: ‘Ghana at a Crossroads’ on Monday.
Political watchers say it will be historic should NDC abolish the E-Levy if it wins power after the 2024 poll as similar promises have never been fulfilled.
It will be recalled that the NDC pledged to abolish the Communication Service Tax (Talk Tax) introduced by the Kufuor-led New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration if the party won the 2008 general election.
However, the party rather increased the tax threshold when it assumed office in 2009.
“Mahama is ‘incompetent’ in policy reversals”
Minister for Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has stated that former president Mahama has a bad track record of reversing policies initiated by the governing NPP.
His comment followed Mr. Mahama’s promised to repeal the E-Levy Act if the NDC wins power in the 2024 elections.
“I just want to remind Ghanaians that the last time the NDC and Mahama made a similar statement was when the communication service tax was introduced,” Mr. Oppong Nkrumah recalled on Asaase Breakfast Show yesterday.
“He [Mahama] argued against it that the cost of internet and talk time will go up by 8% in Parliament and later joined the late Prof Atta Mills as his running mate to make a promise that they were going to abolish the communication service tax.
“When they won power, they turned around and increased the rate. So I think there is a clear track record and nobody should be dissuaded by some of these comments, the Ghanaian economy is in safe hands, the 2017 to 2019 window shows us clearly that the NPP and the Akufo-Addo administration had the competencies to bring the Ghanaian economy back on track”, the Information Minister recounted.
It should also be mentioned that NPP made similar promises like abolishing the Energy Sector Levies Act (ESLA) but failed to do so, showing that promises on tax reversals have never been fulfilled in by successive governments.
E-Levy on workers’ day
The opposition NDC had earlier criticised the government for implementing the “obnoxious tax,” E-Levy on workers’ day.
It claimed that is “cruel” and “insensitive” for the Akufo-Addo led government to implement an “unpopular” tax on a day meant to commemorate the hard work and fighting spirit of workers.
A statement signed by the party’s national chairman, Mr. Samuel Ofosu-Ampofo said the NDC will prioritise relieving Ghanaians from their suffering if it wins power in 2024.
“We consider it particularly cruel and an affront to the sensitivities of all Ghanaians, that the Akufo-Addo government chose to impose the unpopular E-Levy tax on Ghanaians on May Day. We know, from all the surveys conducted on this issue, that about 85% of Ghanaians are opposed to this obnoxious tax. We now have a government that has not only lost its way but is insensitive to the suffering of the people of Ghana.
“As we join all workers to mark this auspicious day, we want to assure them that upon the accession to power by the NDC in January 2025, the pains and sorrow of the workers of Ghana will receive our utmost focus and attention,” the statement said.
