President Akufo-Addo says he is delighted that Parliament has finally passed the E-Levy Bill.
According to him, it would make a significant contribution to revenue mobilisation and the management of the economy
“Mr. Speaker, despite the protracted and sometimes acrimonious nature of proceedings, I am happy that the House has, finally, found it possible to pass the E-levy Bill. I believe the levy is going to make a significant contribution to revenue mobilisation and the management of the national economy, and I want to thank Members of the House for making this possible.”
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The President added that the “road to recovery will be hard and long, Mr. Speaker, but we have started on a good footing by accepting that we are in a difficult place, and are taking the difficult decisions that will get us out. If anyone ever had any doubts about the need to be self-reliant, the point has now been forcibly drilled home to us. The pursuit of the Ghana Beyond Aid agenda is even more compelling now.
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“I have no doubts whatsoever that we have it in us to build the Ghana of our dreams. I saw the spirit of togetherness and the willingness to help each other when COVID struck. We looked out for each other. I saw the sense of enterprise and innovation of the Ghanaian. I saw our manufacturers quickly adapt their plants to produce sanitisers and our tailors equally quickly displayed the innovation they had always been known for, by turning face masks into fashion items.”
Parliament yesterday passed the controversial E-Levy on Tuesday, March 20 after the third reading in the House.
This was the Minority staged a walkout during the second reading of the E-levy Bill.
They walked out after Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu said the NDC MPs remain united in opposing the policy.
According to him, they did not want to be associated with any discussion about E-Levy in House.
He said: “E-levy is the nuisance of nuisance tax,” he said, adding that “businesses are suffering under your watch. We are united that we will not support E-levy, we will not vote for E-levy.”
The approval was reached after the Consideration Stage was completed by a Majority-sided House .