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The government’s efforts to get Parliament to approve a total of $350 million as tax exemption for 41 businesses operating under the One-District, One-Factory programme is facing stiff opposition in Parliament.
This is because the Minority Caucus in Parliament has expressed its readiness to block the consideration of the amount.
The group argued that granting tax waivers to well-endowed businesses with financial muscles would impose a tax burden on the Ghanaian taxpayer, as well as a fiscal burden on the incoming government in the 2025 budget.
Discussing the business for the seventh meeting of the eighth Parliament to be on the Order Paper of the fourth session, the Minority persistently objected to the consideration of tax exemptions, as it has for the past two years.
The Minority expressed those reservations after the Leader of Government Business, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, had presented the business statement, ending Friday, December 20, 2024.
He had asked the House to adopt the report of the Finance Committee on the tax waivers for companies operating under the 1D1F programme.
This was the cornerstone of discussions in the House which reconvened yesterday after a one-month break.
Parliament had gone on a break over a power play as to which side had the right to sit on the Majority side.
Yesterday’s sitting was, however, without controversy as the National Democratic Congress Members of Parliament (MPs) returned to sit on the left side of the Speaker, with the New Patriotic Party MPs sitting on the right side of the Speaker.
The issue of the tax waivers has been pending before the House for two years.
The beneficiary companies are B5 Plus Limited, Ferro Fabrik Limited, Everpure Holdings Limited, Miro Forestry Ghana Limited, Specialty Beers (Ghana) Limited, Prestige Integrated Agro Company Limited, Sneda Transformers Technologies Limited, Yaabiko Enterprise Limited, Lesdy Company Limited, Lesfam Industries Limited and Golden Latex Products Limited.
The rest are RMS GPT Ghana Limited, Keda (Ghana) Ceramics Company Limited, Ciments de l'Afrique Ghana Limited, Grand Chem Limited, Triton Och Industries Ghana Limited, Epac Flexible Packaging Ghana Limited, CK Engineering and Construction Limited, Beekaf Foods Ghana Limited, Emperor Foods and Beverage Limited and Korban Company Limited.
The others are Sunda Ghana Investment Limited, Sunda Ghana Limited, Matrix Industries Limited, Golden Africa Consumer Products Limited, Amponsah-Efah Pharmaceuticals Limited, Agrohao Ghana Company Limited, Fu Cai Company Limited, Yellowtail Limited, Everpack Limited, Happy Sunshine Company, Multipac Company Limited, Golden Africa Soap Industries Ghana Limited, Mass Industries Limited, Rikpat Company Limited, Rision Industry Company Limited, OA & J Pharmaceuticals Limited, Echo Poly Industries Limited, YMHY Doors Ghana Manufacturing Company Limited, Sankofa Brewery Limited and Nungua Warehouse Ghana Limited.
Commenting on the business statement, the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, said the Minority had already made their position on the tax exemption clear.
He said considering that all the matters had been voted against and rejected by the Ghanaian people, he asked why the Majority Leader was still putting it in the business statement and “wanting to get us to work on these matters which are so unpopular”.
“This list is over 40 tax waivers, Mr Speaker, and this will have serious fiscal implications for the next government.
“I mean why do you want to saddle the next government with these huge revenue losses when you have been roundly rejected at the polls, and this a government talking about coming to cut down obnoxious and nuisance taxes, and then you are creating more fiscal liabilities for us,” he said.
Given the limited time the House has before it is dissolved on January 6 next year, the Speaker of Parliament, Alban S.K. Bagbin, put forward six items for consideration at yesterday’s sitting.
They were Expenditure in Advance of Appropriation Bill, 2024; the Environmental Protection Bill, 2024; the Boundary Commission Bill, 2024; the Social Protection Bill, 2023; the Parliament Transition Bill, 2023, and the Parliamentary Service Bill, 2024.
Mr Bagbin said following a consensual agreement between the leadership of the House, he thought that the number one priority was Expenditure in Advance of Appropriation.
Contributing to the statement, Minority Leader, Dr Casiel Ato Forson, said the Majority was proposing to acquire ships worth €140 million in spite of the current economic situation of the country.
He said it was very wrong for a government that was leaving office in three weeks to commit that amount to expenditure.
“Mr Speaker, if it is extremely important for the state, allow the new government to commit them,” he said.
He added that the tax exemptions if approved, would put a fiscal burden on the next budget.
“So, you are saying that the next government should carry your burden of $350 million? Mr Speaker, no way, as this is not going to happen.
“As we speak, there is no 2025 budget and activities before us cannot commit to the 2025 budget since you do not know the priorities of the next government,” he said.
Citing the former Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, on a similar matter, Dr Forson said in 2016, what Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu said was a reason the then NDC government could not take a loan for the Damongo multipurpose irrigation project.
“I brought the Damongo water project before Parliament, but they (Majority) said to us that you cannot commit the next government, and if it is urgent or important, allow the next government to take it.
“So, Mr Speaker, issues that will commit this country as long as our budget is concerned, let us leave it for the next administration to handle,” he said.
He argued that there were “low-hanging fruits” such as the Environmental Protection Agency Bill which had been worked on and was due to be read for the third time.
“Mr Speaker, that one if you want to do it, you can do it, but if you do not want it, the next minister responsible for the environment will come and do it, but anything else will not happen,” he said.
