Ghanaians must meet their tax obligations – NCCE

News from Saturday, June 8, 2019

Source: Graphic.com.gh

2019-06-08

The director of the Kadjebi District of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Mr. Daniel Agbesi Latsu, has appealed to Ghanaians to respect their tax obligations so that the government generates revenue sufficient to develop the country.

Besides that taxes are essential to national development, he said that it was a civic duty and a constitutional obligation to pay taxes.

Mr. Latsu explained that the country's tax population represented only 1.2 million of the estimated 28 million people, even though many eligible Ghanaians were working in the informal sector.

Constitutional duty

Mr. Latsu stated that the NCCE considered this to be a violation of article 41 (j) of the 1992 Constitution, which enjoined every citizen "to declare his income honestly to the appropriate and legal bodies and to satisfy all its tax obligations ".

He made these statements during a tax compliance program at Ahamansu market in Kadjebi district, in the Oti region.

The program aimed to raise awareness of the need to pay taxes, thus reinforcing the funds generated internally by Kadjebi District and Ghana as a whole.

The NCCE undertakes the exercise in partnership with the Kadjebi District Assembly, the Developing Communities Network (NOCID), a non-governmental organization based in Kadjebi and the Department of Information Services (DSI). ), and funded by ActionAid Ghana.

He added that taxes helped the government to create jobs and provide social amenities such as roads, electricity, hospitals, drinking water, schools, markets, among others. .

Mrs. Agnes Obour, coordinator of NOCID, said that each tax contributes to nation building, hence the need for everyone to pay taxes.

Equity and transparency

Ms. Obour stated that, to the extent that she was required to pay taxes, she also had the right to claim the refund of taxes collected in excess, the right to be courteous and considerate, to be fair and transparency, independent appeal and review, among others.

Kadjebi District interim information officer, Al-Adams El-Alpha, said the taxes served as a means of protection for local industries, redistribution of income to reduce inequality, control inflation, pay all the officials and take into account other factors.

Mr. Al-Adams called on merchants to pay their taxes so that the government would meet these requirements.

Similar programs have been held at the Poase Cement Market, Kadjebi, Dapaa, Dodo-Aman, Pampawie, Wawaso, Asato, Dodo-Tamale, Obuasi and other places.