Accra, Sept. 24, GNA - Ghana is losing colossal revenue through tax evasion on import duties by import, warehousing and trading companies, according to findings by the Committee Investigating Operational Malpractices at Customs Exercise and Preventive Service (CEPS). It came to light at the Committee's sitting in Accra on Monday, that companies like Continental Commodity Trading Company (CCTC), Dry Food, Sucatride, Ramani, Mansel, Silver Platter, Taj Investments and Oman Commodities are still in arrears of import duties since 2004. "We realised that this area is a minefield. This is money we can actually go in for," the Committee said.

The practice of some of the companies is that they pay the import duty tax for new goods imported without paying the arrears for previous goods imported making it to appear as if they had paid all arrears. A visit to some of the warehousing companies last week revealed a seemingly lack of concern by CEPS officials in the clearing of goods in their warehouses.

The Committee revealed that CCTC was in arrears of 8,248,630 Ghana Cedis for January to May this year, and 9,434,949 Ghana Cedis for 2006; Sucatride owed 194,245 Ghana Cedis from January to May 2007; Dry Food 289,516 Ghana cedis from January to May this year and Ramani 1,603,126 Ghana cedis during the same period.

Other companies in arrears for the period January to May 2007 are Silver Platter 625,356 Ghana cedis and Taj Investments 1,109, 920 Ghana Cedis.

Oman Commodities had an outstanding of 40,360 Ghana Cedis from January to December 2005, 146,331 Ghana Cedis for 2006 and 111, 817 Ghana Cedis from January to May 2007.

Manswell is in arrears of more than 275,000 Ghana Cedis for the period January to December 2006.

Meanwhile 250 Ghanaian residents in the United Kingdom and the United States of America have petitioned the Committee against extortion, wrong tariffs mishandling of cargo by freight forwarders at the nation's ports.

Mr David Nutakor, Vice President of Ghana Institute of Freight Forwarders, told the Committee that lack of legal backing to drive away unlicensed forwarders was a hindrance to solve the harassment of importers and other businessmen to clear their goods.

He said it was difficult to bring errant members under control when they joined rival freight forwarding institution to avoid sanctions. Mr Nutakor said exporters must provide enough export information so that destination inspection companies could prevent the haphazard handling of international trade transactions, which tended to cause the overstay of imported goods to attract heavy demurrage.

Nana Atta Boamah, President of Royal Pacific Shipping in the US, suggested that the destination inspection companies like Gateway Services Company should be sited within the ports rather than locations outside the ports to facilitate the processing of documents for the clearance of imported goods. 24 Sept. 07