Frank Atanley Kofigah
The Executive Secretary of the Vehicle and Assets Dealers Union of Ghana, Frank Atanley Kofigah, has appealed to the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to place greater emphasis on verifying imported vehicles rather than concentrating solely on revenue collection.
Speaking to the media in Accra, Mr. Kofigah pointed out that the recent discovery of nearly 100 stolen cars from the United States in Ghana exposes significant weaknesses in port checks.
“Customs should be up to the task; Preventive should also be up to the task. They should not focus only on revenue or on the fact that duties will come in to increase revenue and help them meet their targets,” he stated.
He stressed that stronger preventive measures are crucial in tackling vehicle theft crimes.
“Now the consumers are suffering and the car dealers are being blamed, but the syndicates or cartels behind this cannot be found,” he added.
Mr. Kofigah emphasised that Customs, as the first line of verification, must rigorously screen imported vehicles before clearance.
“What we are saying is that the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority are the gatekeepers to ensure that these stolen vehicles do not even enter the country in the first place, because the theft did not happen here; it occurred in a different jurisdiction.”
He further explained that car dealers should not be held responsible for the presence of stolen vehicles on the Ghanaian market, since their operations depend on the authenticity of Customs-issued documentation.
“As a Union, we cannot perform that check; the only agency mandated with that oversight responsibility is Customs. They have the system to ensure that such vehicles do not enter the country,” he stated.
By Vera Sarpong