Member of Parliament (MP) for Ofoase-Ayirebi, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has criticized the government for providing no significant tax reliefs to Ghanaians in its 2025 budget.
The former Minister for Works and Housing argued that although the Finance Minister presented six taxes as being abolished, only two were actually removed.
The six taxes listed as abolished in the 2025 Budget include the 1% E-Levy, the 10% withholding tax on lottery winnings (referred to as the betting tax), the emission levy on industrial vehicles, VAT on motor vehicle insurance policies, the 1.5% withholding tax on unprocessed gold by small-scale miners, and the 1% COVID-19 levy.
However, speaking in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen, the Ranking Member on the Economy and Development Committee of Parliament accused the government of misleading the public.
“The government claims to have removed 6 taxes, but when you carefully examine the budget appendices, you will realize that only two have actually been removed—the 1% Electronic Transactions Levy (E-Levy) and the 1.5% withholding tax on the mining of unprocessed gold by small-scale miners. For the e-levy, we were raking in GH₵2.2 billion, which means a revenue gap has been created,” he said.
He further argued that taxes like the emission levy and VAT on motor insurance have never been paid by Ghanaians despite their existence.
“If you take a closer look, you will see that the emission levy, VAT on motor vehicle insurance, the betting tax, and the 1% COVID-19 levy have not been scrapped as claimed. The appendices of the budget clearly show this,” he emphasized.
He called on Finance Minister Dr. Ato Forson to be truthful with Ghanaians and clarify the status of the remaining four taxes.
“We cannot allow the government to create a false impression by just speaking English to us,” he said.
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