Full statement: NDC’s ‘Moment of Truth’ rounds up 2019 with several jabs at Ursula
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has rounded up its ‘Moment of Truth’ press conferences for 2019 with jabs at the Communications Minister Ursula Owusu.
At its seventh press conference, designed to criticise the governing New Patriotic Party, the speakers zoomed in on two controversial issues.
The 50 per cent increase in the Communication Service Tax (CST) and the controversial introduction of a revenue monitoring system for telcos (KelniGVG).
According to the NDC, the Akufo-Addo administration is siphoning money from the citizens under the pretext of telecommunications revenue assurance.
The NDC argues the needless KelniGVG deal and the 50 per cent increase in CST is causing unbearable hardships on already suffering Ghanaians.
Background to KelniGVG deal
The $89m contract is to allow Kelni GVG to operate a common platform that includes the NCA and the GRA by connecting the entire switch of the physical network nodes of the telecommunication operators in the country.
The programme is expected to improve revenue mobilisation for the government and also check simbox fraud.
Communication Service Tax
The Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta in July this year, had announced an upward adjustment in a number of taxes including the CST with the hope of raising additional revenue to help execute government programmes and policies.
Presenting the 2019 Mid-Year Budget Review to Parliament on Monday, Ofori-Atta said the government has decided to raise the CST from 6 per cent to 9 per cent.
This decision did not sit well with the Telcos as they issued a communique to start making deductions from October 1, 2019.
“Dear customer, with the increase in Communications Service Tax – CST to 9%, effective 1st October 2019, CST of 9% will be applied to every recharge. Thank you,” a text to a Vodafone Ghana user read.
Read the full statement of the NDC’s argument below