Talk Tax Bill withdrawn

The Communications Service Tax (Amendment) Bill has been withdrawn from Parliament for further consultation and changes to some clauses which have generated controversy.

The bill was slated for passage Friday.

Information available to the Daily Graphic from within the Majority Caucus, however, points to the fact that the bill has been withdrawn for appropriate changes to be made to it.

According to the source, the views of the telecom operators which submitted a memorandum to the House on Wednesday, July 3, 2013 are to be taken into consideration.

Furthermore, the issue of interconnectivity and the charges to be levied on receivers of international calls which generated heated debate between the Minority and the Majority groups is to be discussed with stakeholders.

By the close of sitting yesterday, discussions on the issue had begun behind closed doors.

The Communications Service Tax (Act 754), also known as Talk Tax, was passed in 2008.

The amendment seeks to impose taxes on receivers of international calls and also for the receipt of text messages, as well as electronic mails.

The proposed amount to be charged for each call or e-mail is equivalent to six cents (US).

Any telecom operator which fails to comply and exact the charges will face sanctions, including a revoking of its operating licence by the National Communications Authority (NCA).

In another development, the Minority in Parliament yesterday raised concerns over the failure of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) to furnish the House with information on the country’s foreign exchange receipts as stipulated by law.

Article 184 (1) of the Constitution states: “The Committee of Parliament responsible for financial matters shall monitor the foreign exchange receipts and payments or transfers of the Bank of Ghana in and outside Ghana and shall report on them to Parliament once in every six months.”

However, according to the Minority group, the tenet had not been adhered to.

The Member of Parliament for Asene/Akroso/Manso, Mr Yaw Owusu-Boateng (NPP), who first raised the issue during discussions on the business statement for next week, said for the past four and a half years, the BoG had failed to provide the relevant information.

The debate, however, nearly degenerated into hot exchanges when the Deputy Majority Leader, Mr Alfred Agbesi (NDC, Ashaiman), referred to Dr Matthew Opoku-Prempeh (NPP, Manhyia South) as being indisciplined for introducing an issue which was not on the business statement for next week.

That led Dr Opoku-Prempeh to “threaten” to “descend into the gutter” with Mr Agbesi.

The First Deputy Speaker, Mr Ebo Barton-Odro, who was in the Speaker’s Chair at the time, managed to cool down tempers.

The Minority Leader, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu (NPP Suame), said the BoG, in response to the constitutional provision, should send the relevant information to Parliament.

If the BoG proved intransigent, he said, Parliament should write a strongly worded letter to the bank to comply with the provisions.

Dr Anthony Akoto Osei (NPP, Old Tafo) described the issue as a serious one which should engage the full attention of the House.

Dr Opoku-Prempeh went beyond the issues concerning Article 184 of the Constitution, saying the BoG needed to explain how it issued licences to micro-finance companies, most of which swindled customers.

But the Leader of Government Business in Parliament, Dr Benjamin Bewa-Nyog Kunbuor, said the issue of micro-finance companies had not been brought to the attention of the Business Committee of the House and reminded Dr Opoku-Prempeh that the floor of the House was not the appropriate forum.

Mr Barton-Odro reminded members that the Speaker, Mr Edward Doe Adjaho, had already ruled on the failure of the BoG to provide information on foreign exchange receipts and said the ruling settled the matter.

Story: Mark-Anthony Vinorkor