Francis Timore Boi
The establishment of specialised courts to trial property owner who default in paying taxes on their properties will help local assemblies raise more revenue, said tax Analyst, Francis Timore Boi.
According to Mr. Timore Boi, the move will deter individuals from evading the payment of property tax which can be a huge source of revenue for local assemblies.
He beliefs that local assemblies could significantly reduce their dependence on the central government if they are able to effectively collect property tax.
“Taxation is not a donation. It’s not like a church where you call people to come and give as and when they can. It is enforcement which will bring the tax revenue.
“…We are calling for special courts to be established so that for those who don’t comply with the law, the court deals with them,” he said.
Mr. Timore Boi gave this suggestion during the panel discussion at the National Tax Conference organised by Oxfam on the theme, “Improving Progressive Property Taxation and Tax Compliance: The Key to Increased Domestic Revenue Mobilisation” in Accra.
Mr. Timore Boi stressed the need for enforcement of the tax measure by local assemblies.
District Assemblies should be able to drag people to court for non-compliance to the Local Government Act for the payment of property taxes,” he stressed.
Assistant Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) with the Policy and Programmes Department, Dominic Naab, said citizens need to see their taxes at work.
He, however, disagrees with implementing tough measures to increase property tax payments stressing the need for more education.
“We have tried this kind of path before where we used brute force to collect taxes but we think that it hasn’t helped over the years. What we should rather be doing is encouraging compliance.
Other stakeholders called for an effective and balanced taxation system adding that transparency, fairness and accountability on the part of officials would let to trust in the system.
The conference also saw the launch of Ghana Responsible Tax Index; Consolidated Ranking Report 2020-2024.
The report rated selected companies from various sectors of the economy based on their level of tax responsibility for the 2020 to 2023 calendar years.
Rankings are based on the GRTI methodology designed by Oxfam in Ghana.
The report examined thirteen companies from four different sectors of the economy; petroleum, mining, telecommunication and General Goods and Consumables (GG&C) sectors.
Out of the thirteen companies selected, no company was able to score points in all of the four pillars in any year.
It was also apparent that no company disclosed unique tax incentives they enjoyed in the years under consideration.
A Daily Guide Report