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The Ghana Federation of Labours (GFL) has called on Parliament to engage critical industry stakeholders prior to any action on the new taxes and Excise bill that were yet to be approved.
The Union in their press statement issued on Thursday, March 30, explained that the country is facing a financial crisis which has caused a high cost of living for the citizens, thus the need for Parliament to take careful consideration in passing the bills.
The GFL’s comments come after government laid three financial bills before Parliament which aimed at revamping domestic revenue mobilisation.
The bills, namely the Income Tax Amendment Bill, the Excise Duty Amendment Bill, and the Growth and Sustainability Amendment Bill are expected to generate about GH¢4 billion annually when passed.
There has also been a desperate plea for the government not to pass its three new revenue measures.
Players in the petroleum upstream sector, importers and exporters are all warning of dire consequences if the bills are passed.
But President Akufo-Addo has since told Parliament that the three bills need to be passed to enable government to secure an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout.
To this end, the GLF said they had earlier issued a petition to the Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin, on February 3, in which his attention was being drawn to the amount of taxes being paid by “distressed businesses,” and the harm a possible increment in taxes will pose on investments.
The Ghana Federation of Labour in their press statement also expressed disappointment in Parliament for approving President Akufo-Addo’s six ministerial appointees.
The Union said that Parliament by constitutional mandate is expected to check and avoid the implementation of policies that threaten businesses.
“Parliament by constitutional mandate is positioned to check profligacy of the Executive to ensure good governance for the benefit of the citizenry for development.
“Contrary to expectations of the people, Parliament is seen as being complicit in implementation of outrageous Government policies which threaten to destroy businesses and render joblessness,” the statement said.
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