Large quantities of newly printed Senior High Schools text books have been shredded into pieces to be used to produce toilet rolls, tissue papers and other products by a Chinese company at Awutu Senya.
The books were in sacks and boxes at the Everyday Tissue Manufacturing Ghana factory premises at Kwame Wetei in Awutu Breku, Central region.
The textbooks had Government of Ghana Property and Strictly Not for Sale boldly embossed on them.
Some of them also had schools stamps like, Apam Secondary School Property, Winneba Secondary School, and Wesley Girls High School in them.
Operatives of Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) Informant and Counter Intelligence Unit questioned the factory workers why they were shredding textbooks meant for Schools.
The managers of the company could not provided documents to support the books.
The GRA is charging the Chinese company, Everyday Tissue Manufacturing, for evading tax and failure to issue the GRA’s Value Added Tax Invoice.
The company, was charged for using books sponsored by government for the junior high schools and senior high schools, which were strictly not for sale to produce toilet rolls.
The police have, therefore, arrested three officials of the company for using state textbooks as raw material to produce toilet roll for sale.
They are Ma Fui Jiuming, Manager of the company, Ma Mang, sales manager, all Chinese and Prince Andoh, company’s interpreter, assisting the police in investigations.
 The exercise forms part of an enforcement tour carried out by the GRA Special Revenue Mobilisation Taskforce at Awutu Breku to clampdown on tax defaulters.
Coordinator, of the Taskforce, Henry Sam, briefing the press, said the exercise was instigated by GRA Informant and Counter Intelligence Unit.
He said: “The books, instead of going to the classroom to help the students with their studies, are rather recycled as raw materials, even though they are not outdated, to manufacture toilet rolls”.
The Taskforce did not find any tangible records by the company such as books of account and this is against section 27 of the Revenue Administration Act, which mandates businesses to keep and maintain proper records.
Mr Sam said the Taskforce had retrieved some of the books as exhibits and confiscated some property of the company including four vehicles covered with the Commissioner General of GRA seal.
