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By Prince Acquah\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cape Coast, Nov 25, GNA \u2013 Some residents of Cape Coast in the Central Region have met the review of the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-Levy) with regret and reiterated calls on government to scrap the policy completely.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The proposed review of the revenue collection policy, they lamented, could not alleviate their hardships in the already wobbling economy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The E-Levy, a 1.5 per cent deduction of selected electronic transactions with a 100-Cedi daily threshold, was introduced by the government in 2022 as part of measures to shore up revenue.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The fiscal measure has, however, failed to live up to expectations as it is accruing far less than the projected revenue.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
In view of this, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, while presenting the 2023 budget in Parliament on Thursday, November 24, announced a reduction in the rate of the policy from 1.5 per cent to one per cent without the threshold.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The review, among other fiscal and austerity measures, is targeted at salvaging the country\u2019s southbound economy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
This means that subject to approval by Parliament, Ghanaians will pay E-Levy of one per cent on all affected forms of transactions despite the amount involved.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Speaking to some citizens on the development, they expressed disappointment at the policy and questioned the sensitivity of government to their plights.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madam Abigail Mensah, a trader at the Kotokuraba Market, said she did not want the policy in any form and that it must be scrapped off immediately.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlready, we can barely afford to feed ourselves and our families and the best government can do is to push us off the cliff with taxes?\u201d she queried with a visibly livid expression.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Comparing the E-levy in its current form to the proposed review, Madam Lordina Ackah, also a trader, preferred it to be left untouched because the percentage removed was an insult.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
In an interesting twist, another market woman, Madam Gertrude Dadzie who also called for the levy to be scrapped, suggesting that the government found better means of easing the plight of Ghanaians.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A taxi driver, Mr Francis Awotwe, called on the government to cancel the E-Levy and bring back the tollbooths.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lamenting the hardship in the economy, he said he made nothing from his taxi business because every money he made went into buying fuel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI buy a gallon of petrol for more than 80 Cedis and I do not make up to 300 Cedis in a day. How much do I give my car owner and how much do I take home to cater for my family?\u201d he retorted.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIn spite of this, the government still wants to take away the small money I send to my poor old mother in the village.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, some mobile money vendors have said the development would collapse their businesses even further.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mr Nii Armah Tagoe indicated to the Ghana News Agency that his average daily profit of 80 Cedis had dropped to 20 Cedis since the introduction of the levy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said even though transactions conducted were not affected by E-Levy, customers\u2019 activities had dropped significantly due to the lack of proper education on the policy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have not made any profit since the E-Levy came and the trend now is that many people no more do withdrawals and deposits than money transfer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe review is worse, and it is going to kill us more,\u201d he added.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another vendor, Mr Ahmed Yussif, said he did not expect any significant effect on his business, adding that the impact, if any, would be felt after a month.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
GNA\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n