Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta has given the indication that the implementation of the e-levy will start in May this year.
The Controller and Accountant General (CAGD) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), who will be the revenue collectors, he said, have given the assurance that the deductions could start within the stated timeline.
“We had some meetings with Controller and Accountant Generals Department (CAGD) and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and they have said right at the beginning of May they should be able to put their system together,” he told TV3 in Parliament on Wednesday, March 30 just after the President’s State of the Nation Address.
The E-levy was passed by Parliament on Tuesday, March 29 after the third reading in the House during which the Minority staged a walkout as part of their long-held opposition to the bill.
The Minority has described the revenue proposal as punitive which will further increase the “the high cost of doing business in the country.”
“E-levy is the nuisance of nuisance taxes,” he said, adding that “businesses are suffering under your watch. We are united that we will not support E-levy, we will not vote for E-levy.”
They have subsequently served notice to challenge the approval in court.
Haruna Iddrisu described the approval as illegal and unconstitutional because in their view, the Majority did not have the right numbers to pass it.
“This is a charade,” he said at a press conference in Parliament, adding that “there is no E-levy.”
“The majority of less than 137 conducting businesses only proceeded on illegal and unconstitutional business. Parliament did not have the numbers to take any decision that should binding Parliament and Ghanaians,” he added.
But Mr Ofori-Atta said it is within their right to go to court but added that Parliament had the required number in the House to pass it.
“If somebody has issue they got to court, I don’t think there is anything dramatic about it. I think we had the quorum,” he said.
