Sports journalist, Saddick Adams has urged the youth of Ghana to unite and demonstrate against government’s decision to impose a10% withholding tax on sports betting.
According to Saddick Adams, it is an insult for a politician to claim that government deserves to tax bettors because it is a job.
He said, “If a politician says they want to tax bettors because they are making money, then it is an insult because they haven’t created a job for them. People use their wisdom to predict matches and win.”
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) announced that persons who engage in sports betting and lottery would have to pay a 10% tax on all earnings starting on August 15.
Saddick Adams noted that though it is legitimate for people to pay taxes, he wants the government to come into agreement with the youth of Ghana that their taxes will be put to good use .
“We have to come together and demonstrate because here in Ghana people are afraid of demonstrations. We have to let government know the number of people involved. This way we can tell government that within one year, we want to see transparency and accountability on what the money has been used for,” he said.
Adding, “It is used in a manner that it will be tangible for us to feel. If you tax tomatoes farmers they will demand good roads, tractors or fertilizer, same for cocoa farmers. So as bettors, you are contributing your quota to the development of Ghana, but if you want the money that government is taking to be used like TOR levy which has disappeared then we need a bettors association to keep government accountable.”
He further explained that in the UK and the USA, people pay up to 40% in taxes for betting but they don't complain because their money is put to good use for their benefit.
