By Elsie Appiah-Osei
Accra, July 17, GNA — The New Patriotic Party Minority Caucus in Parliament Wednesday called on the government to scrap the proposed fuel levy and explore more sustainable ways of generating revenue to address Ghana’s energy sector debt.
The call followed the government’s decision to postpone the implementation of the GH¢1 per liter fuel levy, which was initially scheduled to take effect today, June 16.
Speaking to a section of the media in Parliament House, Accra, Mr. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Economy Committee, emphasized that taxing petroleum products was not a sustainable approach to revenue mobilization.
He said, “We as a minority have called on the government to go beyond the suspension and scrap the levy entirely.
“This suspension reveals two things: first, we warned that introducing the levy would increase pump prices. Second, assuming international fuel prices would remain stable was flawed.”
Mr. Oppong Nkrumah, also the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Ofoase-Ayirebi, also explained that the government’s decision to suspend the levy was an admission of miscalculation.
“While we wait for the scrapping, we are urging the government to use this window to begin a comprehensive review of the efficiency and fairness of our revenue mobilization system,” the MP said.
According to Mr. Oppong Nkrumah, Ghana’s budget still faced a major shortfall due to revenue gaps created by tax cuts that were not matched with reduced spending.
“Our revenue problems have not gone away. This GH¢5.7 billion levy was meant to patch a budget hole of about GH¢6 billion. That problem still exists,” he noted.
The Minority insisted that the government must find fairer and more sustainable ways to raise revenue without burdening citizens at the pump.
GNA
Christian Akorlie