The Government of Ghana through the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) cannot begin the implementation of the e-levy on May 1 due to the injunction application filed by the Minority at the Supreme Court.
In his view, the GRA will be in contempt of court if it goes ahead with the implementation.
“In this current situation, the application for injunction states clearly that the Government of Ghana should be injuncted through the Ghana Revenue Authority, workers, agents and assigns of the Ghana government.
“It will suffice that they clearly mentioned the Ghana Revenue Authority in the application for the injunction. The application for injunction is notoriously known to anybody in Ghana and so the GRA cannot be heard to say that they were not aware. Equally, the injunction application was served on the Attorney General specifically asking that the Ghana government not to implement the e-levy through the GRA. The Attorney General is supposed to inform the GRA not to go ahead and implement the e-levy,” he told TV3 on Thursday April 21.
On Tuesday April 19 the Minority in Parliament filed an application at the Supreme Court to block the commencement of the e-levy deductions.
The Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta earlier revealed that the implementation of the e-levy would start in May this year.
“We had some meetings with Controller and Accountant Generals Department (CAGD) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and they have said right at the beginning of May they should be able to put their system together,” he told TV3’s Roland Walker in Parliament after President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo delivered the State of the Nation Address on Wednesday March 30.
The E-levy was passed by Parliament on Tuesday March 29 after the third reading in the House. The Minority staged a walkout during the second reading. They walked out after Mr Iddrisu said the NDC MPs remain united in opposing the policy.
Contributing to the E-levy debate on the floor of the House, he described the policy proposal as punitive which if approved will further increase the “the high cost of doing business in the country.”
“E-levy is the nuisance of nuisance tax,” he said, adding that “businesses are suffering under your watch. We are united that we will not support E-levy, we will not vote for E-levy.”
