By
Dorothy Frances Ward, GNA
Kumasi, Nov. 08, GNA
– Government has been urged to put in measures to ensure that the tax system is
equitable and just enough to serve both the developmental and democratic needs
of the people.
Mr Chris Dapaah, the
Executive Director of Resource Link Foundation (RLF), said Ghanaians must also
honour their tax obligations to enable them to justifiably demand
accountability and quality services from government and duty bearers.
He said this at a
public forum in Kumasi on Tax Compliance and Responsibility in Ghana, aimed at
promoting tax transparency and accountability for national development.
It was also to
reduce poverty in the country through networking and effective partnership.
It was organized by
the Tax Justice Coalition – Ghana, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), for
Civil Society Organizations, traders, businesses and other identifiable
institutions.
It was on the theme:
“Addressing Policy Challenges and Regulating Loopholes to improve Tax
Compliance in Ghana.”
Mr Dapaah said
government must also focus on strategies to tackle tax avoidance and evasions.
Among issues
discussed were roles that the Ministry of Finance, the Ghana Revenue Authority,
corporate institutions, citizens and development partners could play to ensure
compliance and efficient resource mobilization.
Dr Alex Ampaabeng,
Fiscal Policy Specialist with OXFAM, said sustained domestic revenue
mobilisation would help finance development and that companies must be ranked
based on how tax-compliant they were.
That, he said, was
because tax responsibility was a new paradigm for doing businesses.
Mr Prince Owusu
Amankwah, the Assistant Revenue Officer at GRA, said tax was a compulsory
obligation imposed by government, which must be fulfilled freely and completely
by all.
He mentioned
challenges such as income splitting, extensive tax exemptions and transfer
pricing, as some of the loopholes in effective tax management.
Mr Amankwah
suggested the reduction in the number of businesses and organizations as well
as individuals who were often granted tax exemptions.
Businesses must also
keep and maintain proper records and provide accurate information to help in
tax collection, he said.
Mr David Abam Adjei,
the Head of the Revenue Department at the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly (KMA),
said tax evasion and providing false statements on tax payment were illegal and
punishable by law.
GNA