The Minority in Parliament, Osahen Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, has criticised the government’s indefinite suspension of the controversial Energy Sector Levies (Amendment) Act, 2025, also known as the ‘Dumsor Levy’.
He described the government’s sudden retreat on the controversial levy of GH¢1 per litre on fuel as a damning admission of failure, hypocrisy, and incompetence.
Osahen Afenyo-Markin in a statement issued June 14, 2025 also labelled the eleventh-hour U-turn as “a shameful retreat”, which he said, exposed, “the fundamentally chaotic and inconsistent approach to economic governance” by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government.
“This is not a policy review. It is a complete retreat under pressure. It is governance by panic and improvisation.
“You don’t rush a law through Parliament only to suspend it days before implementation unless you’ve realised you never should have passed it in the first place.”
The Energy Sector Shortfall and Debt Repayment Levy, scheduled to take effect today June 16, was to impose additional taxes on petroleum products.
However, following a June 13, directive from the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) postponing the rollout, the Minority stressed government has shown it did due diligence nor conducted proper stakeholder consultation.
“This government claimed it needed this levy to fix the energy sector. Now they’re postponing it, blaming global crude price volatility.
“This is the same administration that mocked the previous government for blaming external factors like COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war. Now they’re hiding behind the Middle East crisis. The hypocrisy is breathtaking,” Osahen Afenyo-Markin stated.
NDC’s political dishonesty
The Minority Leader argued that the NDC, while in opposition, vehemently rejected claims that global shocks justified economic hardship, accusing the Akufo-Addo administration of poor leadership.
“Today, barely six months into their own term, they are using the exact same excuses they once ridiculed. That is the height of political dishonesty,” he added.
According to Osahen Afenyo-Markin, the suspension proved the policy was ill-conceived from the start.
He urged the government to go beyond suspension and immediately repeal the law.
“Suspending the levy is not enough. We demand a complete repeal under a certificate of urgency. Ghanaians do not deserve to be toyed with,” he insisted.
Osahen Afenyo-Markin warned that the levy, even if postponed, remains a threat to the economic stability of ordinary Ghanaians.
“At a time when people are struggling with food prices, transportation costs, and utility tariffs, what kind of government chooses to slap on extra fuel taxes? This is economically reckless and morally bankrupt.”
Minority takes no blame
Osahen Afenyo-Markin rejected any attempt to blame the current erratic power supply on the Minority’s opposition to the levy.
“Let no one dare claim that because the levy has been suspended, that is why we have ‘dumsor’. The previous administration kept the lights on without such taxes. If you can’t manage the power sector without taxing people to death, you have no business being in office,” he stressed.
The Minority Leader also criticised the government for failing to tackle operational inefficiencies at the Electricity Company of Ghana.
“You have expired prepaid meters still running. You have people using electricity without meters. Power theft is rampant. And yet, instead of fixing ECG, you want to tax fuel?”
He called on the Minister for Energy and Green Transition to present full policy documents on the stalled Loss Reduction Programme.
“We need to know why the programme to replace obsolete meters has stalled. There are companies ready to deliver meters. What’s the hold-up?”
Parliamentary scrutiny
Osahen Afenyo-Markin told government that Parliament must be allowed to scrutinise all related reforms.
“This is not the time for executive opacity. We want documents, debate, and accountability,” he stated.
The Minority Leader reminded the government of its own campaign promises of bringing relief to Ghanaians.
“They (NDC) came into office promising relief. Instead, they have imposed the most punitive tax in recent memory and then backtracked in panic. That is not leadership. That is failure,” he pointed out.
Osahen Afenyo-Markin urged Ghanaians to stand with the Minority in demanding the total withdrawal of the levy.
“This is not just about politics. It is about principle. If we allow this tax to survive, no one will be safe from the next one.
“The people of Ghana deserve light—and they deserve it without being taxed into darkness,” the Minority Leader added.
