President Mahama files tax returns for 2012

President Mahama further explained that “even as president, if you have any other income, apart from your official income, you are supposed to pay tax”.

In an interaction with the management of the GRA, the president pledged government’s commitment to providing the required logistics and other resources to assist their work.

“The health facilities, schools, roads and other infrastructural development we want in this country cannot be achieved without tax collection, and that is why we shall do everything possible to empower you to perform”, he noted.

He said the passing of legislations would help rope in more people and sectors into the tax net that would subsequently raise the Gross Domestic Product from the current 17 per cent to a higher percentage to enhance Ghana’s chances of becoming a middle income country. President Mahama appealed to the staff of the GRA to cooperate with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to ensure smooth coordination that could speed up tax collection.

Commissioner General of the GRA, George Blankson, said the harmonization and modernization of the revenue authorities enabled them to collect a total of GHC1.7 billion Cedis as tax last year and hoped that with more modernization procedures they would perform better.