The Information Services Department (ISDUpper )'s West office has ramped up a public awareness campaign to dispel public misunderstandings about the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-levy) and encourage people to support the government's revenue mobilization program.
The ISD stated that the sensitization exercise cleared misunderstandings such as the belief that the E-levy would be paid on money saved in their Mobile Money (MoMo) accounts, deposits and withdrawals, and transactions under Gh100.00.
Mr Mustapha Sinto Nuhu, the ISD's Upper West Regional Director, said the E-levy will assist the needy in the region in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Wa. He explained that the exercise was carried out in collaboration with the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) on the E-levy implementation to assist dispel public misunderstandings about the Act and to emphasize the need of compliance.
He stated that the profits from the E-levy will be used to fund development efforts like as road construction, schools, and hospitals, among other things, as well as programs like the Free Senior High School.
"We must recognize that the E-levy is not intended to burden the poor, because the poor will most likely submit less than Gh100.00.
"It will harm the wealthy, and the wealthy will contribute more to the E-levy tax than the poor, which will benefit the needy." He indicated that it is aimed at the wealthy rather than the needy.
The sensitization campaign was carried out across the region's eleven districts and municipalities using information vans and Community Information Centers.
Mr Sinto asked people to register their MoMo Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) with their Ghana Cards in order to avoid E-levy taxes on personal account transactions.
The Information Officer also warned MoMo agents against using a proxy to transfer or withdraw money from a person's account.
"By the end of June, a system will be in place that will be able to identify that." So any mobile money vendor caught up in that would not only lose their company, but will also face criminal charges since they are assisting people in evading taxes, which is illegal," he stated.
"As an Information Services Department, it is our mission to cooperate with any government and non-governmental agency in terms of developmental activity," he added, citing the GRA's collaboration to educate the public about the E-levy Act as an example.