Tax churches, protect the vulnerable
The three key powers in the world are religion, business and politics. The role of religion in the lives of men has been a significant determinant in how they lead their lives and what they consider to be necessary.
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For the sake of argument, we will be using the church as a representation of religion. However, this piece takes into consideration all other religions and faiths at play in the country. In Ghana, we have usually restricted ourselves to Christianity, Islam and traditional religions, though there are other minority faiths in the country.
Religion
A 2012 global poll revealed that over the course of seven years, there has been a reduction in religious beliefs. This pegged 59 per cent of the world population as religious, 36 per cent as non-religious and 13 per cent as atheists. The gradual dwindling of religious beliefs can somewhat be attributed to mankind’s quest for material wealth and the gradual understanding that the acquisition of material wealth has very little or probably none at all to God’s plan for our lives. As mankind grows in intellect and analytics, he has come to appreciate that the human brain, when exploited to its limits, has unique abilities. These abilities may eventually be the source of our own demise.
Take for example the current debate on the production of artificial intelligence; a novel project which will see cognitive decisions made by robots. So, very soon, the next car you buy will be driverless, robots will become teachers of our children and they will determine how we take our medications.
Religion on the other hand serves as a collection of beliefs, cultural systems, world views; a belief in an Omni Potent God and how these beliefs relate to our lives on earth. Proponents of religion talk about the fundamental benefits of morality, ethics, a preferred lifestyle, inspiration and the support the religious system brings to them.
Over the years, there has been divergent views and understanding of the church and the state. Some scholars have argued that the church should be independent of the state so governments do not have influence on their activities. In countries such as Austria, Denmark and Germany, the state actually funds the main church, and or the church charges its members a church tax of somewhere between one per cent - 1.5 per cent. In the United States or America, churches are exempted from government related taxes. This is mainly argued from the very first words of the bill of rights: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” As taxing will become a barrier to religious establishment, these bodies are exempted from paying taxes.
It is same in Ghana. Churches and religious bodies do not pay taxes, just like in the United Kingdom as well. The argument in Ghana is mainly of the fact that these bodies ought to be treated as non-profit organisations and also the notion that they use the revenues they get for the common good of all.
The idea
Tax churches and all religious bodies. Also, government and these religious bodies should establish a regulatory body for religious practice in the country.
Brief
A study by University of Tampa Professor Ryan T. Cragun estimated that in the United States alone, religious tax exemptions amount to over $71 billion every year. Churches make revenues from offerings, tithes and donations. The argument is mostly that this money is used to help the vulnerable in society.
When a church sells miracle through the appealing to the emotions of members to bring forth a fixed amount so God blesses them, that is purely a business venture which ought to be taxed. In most of the crusades and special gatherings these churches embark on, they invite their pastor friends to come preach and make pronouncements, which will get the congregant to dole out some money. At a similar event in one of the big and influential churches in the country, the visiting pastor, almost every year since the inception of the conference, will ask for a 1000 people in the congregation to test God by giving an offering; in my experience it was something like US$150. Now do the math; a thousand people giving US$150 is US$150,000 just within two hours.
In recent times, businesses commit a substantial amount of their profits for social good. So the argument is, if a company such as Fidelity Bank gives out GH¢100,000 a year for social good and a church which makes millions of cedis also gives a fraction of its revenues for social good, are they not to be treated same? Why should the tax cedis of the working class be used to subsidise the expensive lifestyles some of these pastors are into? In the name of the church, these pastors buy properties and make huge investments without paying any tax on them.
Government regulating or religious bodies setting up a regulatory body for the practice of these beliefs will help ensure the protection of the very vulnerable. People are desperate for answers, most of the time these answers reside in our own attitudes; the willingness to learn, to understand and to act. The answers are most of the time not spiritual, but to leave them in the hands of pastors turned businessmen will make the vulnerable among us more desperate.
The state is supposed to be the inspiration of the masses; a government shirks its responsibility when it leaves its citizens to seek hope, inspiration and comfort in the hands of churches and pastors. The church is to assist, not entirely take over.
The building of bold infrastructure, development of projects, monuments, museums and setting up of systems are things which bring hope, inspiration and expectation to the masses; it is the duty of government not the church.
Conclusion
Churches invariably collect taxes from their congregation through tithes and offerings as a means to keep the church running. In that same vein, they should be willing, as a people of God, to pay taxes to the government which builds the entire infrastructure they use and enjoy. Churches have become influential in the national discourse. Though they ask for a separation of the two, they criticise governments and make sweeping statements. They should now step up their game by submitting themselves to support the nation through taxes. This action is best done by government by instating a special vehicle to drive this project. The taxes to be paid may not be same as corporate bodies, but they need to file their returns and any excess money taxed by government.
• Yaw Asamoah works at Creative Trends, the organisers of the African SME Summit. Let’s continue the discussion at African SME Summit on Facebook. Email - [email protected]. Follow us on Whatsapp on 024-4214165
