MINORITY SLAMS NDC OVER ALLEGED BACKDOOR RETURN OF E-LEVY

The Minority in Parliament, led by Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has rejected the Bank of Ghana’s suspension of the proposed Bank-to-Wallet charge, arguing that a suspension is not a repeal.

Speaking to journalists in parliament on the issue, the Minority Leader said the BoG’s decision to put the charge on hold pending consultations amounts to a temporary pause, not a principled reversal. “A pause is not a principle,” he stated, warning that the government cannot be allowed to treat the suspension as a cooling-off period only to reintroduce the charge when public attention drops.

The Minority is demanding that, the Bank of Ghana permanently prohibit Bank-to-Wallet charges that are equivalent to the transaction levy, unless expressly authorized by Parliament.

The Attorney General Dr. Dominic Ayine issued a formal legal opinion on the constitutionality of imposing levy-equivalent charges that may bypass Article 174 of the Constitution, which vests taxing power in Parliament.

The Finance Minister Dr. Casiel Ato Forson appear before Parliament to explain the decision behind the BoG’s announcement and to confirm whether the Executive knew of or encouraged the proposed charge.

The government apologize to Ghanaians, describing the move as one requiring a “humble pie.”

The Minority in parliament maintains that any charge resembling a tax must go through Parliamentary approval and cannot be introduced through regulatory directives.