Business News of Tuesday, 13 July 2004

Source: GNA

NDC to reduce corporate taxes when voted into power

Winneba, July 13, GNA - The former Deputy Minister of Roads and Transport, Mr Mike Allen Hammah, said at Winneba on Sunday that the country's tax policy would be reviewed to relieve corporate bodies of heavy taxes if the National Democratic Congress (NDC) won the December elections.

He described the NPP's tax policy as too burdensome, particularly to private investors and companies because it sought to drain all their profits.

Mr Hammah was addressing members of the party at Winneba as part of the its preparations towards the forthcoming presidential and parliamentary elections later in the year.

He said when the NDC became victorious after the elections one of its major planned objective would be to broaden the tax net to cover more organisations and the citizenry to generate adequate revenue to fund government projects.

Mr Hammah said to achieve this target, the party would initiate and embark on intensive tax education, which would be continuously sustained to deepen the people's interest in the payment of taxes.

The NDC, Mr. Hammah further said, would also sensitise Ghanaians to pay their taxes willingly, rather than the current system where people were always compelled to do so.

Mr Hammah said the current corporate taxes as well as the national reconstruction levy, which Government was collecting from corporate bodies was too much and did not promote private investment as the nation expected.

He said what the country required to enhance economic progress was to sensitise the people on the need to save more money with the banks and extend the tax net to cover more organisations and individuals who hitherto were not covered by the tax net to reduce the pressure on the few corporate bodies in the country.

Mr Hammah urged the electorates to return the NDC to power to enable it to effect the change in the country's tax collection policy.