Veteran journalist, Kwesi Pratt has criticized Vice President and New Patriotic Party (NPP) flagbearer Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia for his pledges to the business community in Ghana.
Dr. Bawumia has pledged to implement a flat tax and tax amnesty system to offer relief to business owners if he is elected President.
The Vice President, speaking at a meeting with members of the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry, described the current tax regime as burdensome and condemned the harassment that some Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) staff subject business owners to.
However, GRA staff are displeased with Dr. Bawumia’s comments, as they believe it undermines their hard work.
“We would like to state unequivocally that we, the workers of GRA, find this statement unfortunate and consider it an attack on the efforts of the hardworking staff of the Authority, which, if not discontinued, would incur the displeasure of workers, disrupt revenue collection efforts, and breed industrial disharmony,” they said in a press release.
Addressing the issue on Peace FM, Kwesi Pratt questioned why the Vice President could not implement his tax reforms now.
He wondered why Dr. Bawumia want to wait until he became President before introducing policies alleviate the plight of business owners in the country.
“As Vice President, what are you doing now?” he queried.
Mr. Pratt also noted that, Dr. Bawumia, as the leader of the Economic Management Team, sits in Cabinet meetings thus could not fathom why he has not tabled his recommendations, such as his resolve to cancel the E-Levy, before them.
“If you can’t persuade your own colleagues to do what is right, there is a problem,” Mr. Pratt argued.
He advised Dr. Bawumia to “cut down on the promises because you can do it now,” stressing that it’s becoming too many.
ALSO READ:
Dr. K.K Sarpong is barred from holding himself as Offinsohene- Security Council
Bawumia has moved from ‘economic Wizkid’ to a fiasco, says Fifi Kwetey
Wenchi Traditional Council bans drumming and noise making, cancels ‘Apoo’ festival