The rate was reduced from 1.75% to 1.5%
Minority caucus staged a walkout
Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, Ranking Member on Parliament’s Finance Committee, has mocked the passage of the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-Levy) Bill.
Speaking during proceedings in Parliament, the Ajumako-Enyan-Esiam MP, noted how the levy has been touted by the government of Ghana as the panacea for the challenges facing the economy.
“Today, we’ve been told this tax can cure most of the sicknesses of this Ghanaian economy to the extent that this tax is more powerful than most of the herbal medicines that we have seen,” he said.
Ato Forson added that E-Levy has been alleged by the government to "even cure Honourable Okudzeto Ablakwa’s bald head”.
Ato Forson's comments about his colleague's loss of hair gave rise to a moment of laughter in Parliament despite a heated debate on the bill.
Ken Ofori-Atta and Charles Adu-Boahen, Finance Minister and Minister of State in charge of Finance respectively were in Parliament to facilitate the passage of the E-Levy after months of back and forth among the MPs.
But to the former Deputy Finance Minister, the bill was not sufficient to rid Ghana of all its economic challenges, therefore, he charged the Ministers “to come with a comprehensive package in restoring economic stability and not to concentrate on E-levy as the panacea to our economic problems.”
To him, the E-Levy should be described as a “digital pocket tax”.
Ato Forson explained that the levy "is a dangerous tax. It is a tax seeking to digitally take money from the pocket.”
About the E-Levy bill
The government of Ghana is seeking to charge electronic transactions that are more than GH¢100 on a daily basis.
Critics of the proposal have warned that this new levy will negatively impact the Fintech space, as well as hurt low-income people and those outside the formal banking sector.
The levy has been the source of tension in Parliament since it was introduced in the 2022 budget. The tensions culminated in a scuffle between lawmakers in Parliament in December 2021.
The government has, however, argued the levy would widen the tax net and that could raise an extra GH¢6.9 billion in 2022. There are also concerns that the government may securitise proceeds from the e-levy to raise extra revenue.
Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa