Parliament orders GRA to implement VAT amendment
Parliament has ordered the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to implement the Value Added Tax (VAT) (Amendment) Act, 2017 (Act 948) and halt the advert in the media suspending the implementation of the Act.
Advertisement
The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mr Joseph Osei-Owusu, who gave the order last Thursday, asked the Ministry of Finance to engage with the GRA and advise it on the import and the need for the implementation of the Act.
The order followed the adoption of the motion calling on the Minister of Finance to implement the Act and suspend the advert, which was moved by the Minority Leader, Mr Haruna Iddrisu.
Mr Osei-Owusu told Parliament that despite the passage of the VAT (Amendment) Act, 2017 (Act 948), the GRA had run an advert suspending the implementation of the Act.
He said no authority had the power to suspend an Act of Parliament.
Mr Iddrisu said the action of the GRA, therefore, amounted to a contempt of Parliament.
He said wholesalers and retailers would continue to pay the old VAT rates, which was inconsistent with the current requirement.
Responding, a Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Kweku Kwarteng, said the advert was an error as no institution could amend an Act of Parliament.
