Businesses are overstressed, stop intimidating us – GUTA to GRA

• The situation has gotten worst as some traders cannot service their loans

• This was made known by the President of the Ghana Union of Traders’ Association

The Ghana Union of Traders’ Association (GUTA) has called on the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to work amicably with the trading community instead of harassing them.

They argued that businesses are overstressed due to some challenges traders are facing, citing the outbreak of the coronavirus and the increment in freight charges as their major problems.

Addressing journalists at a press conference in Accra on Wednesday, July 21, 2021, President of the Association, Dr Joseph Obeng, noted that traders are unable to service their loans because business is not brisk in recent times.

He said, “Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) should give some respite as businesses are over-stressed…We all can attest to the fact that businesses are going through much stress from the beginning of last year to date due to the serious effect of the COVID-19 pandemic. We went through lockdown, unable to travel because of the disease, as well as the subsequent shut down of Airports. It has also affected our ability to service our loans, changed demand patterns as well and in all, affected businesses to the point of total collapse. Under this circumstance, we did our best to serve the people of Ghana and sustained ourselves.”

Dr Obeng requested that the Ghana Revenue Authority should rather educate his members on tax and stop the unorthodox methods some officers use when traders are unable to file their taxes on time.

“Considering the level of cooperation that exists between us and GRA, we would like to appeal to their good offices to reach out to us in terms of education rather than intimidation and the unorthodox methods used by some recalcitrant officers. It is our fervent hope that this candid appeal would be adhered to in the interest of national development in the midst of the pandemic,” he added.