The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) says new taxes by government on petrol and diesel in particular are beyond acceptable levels for developing countries, adding that, Ghana has one of the world’s highest tax components on petroleum products.
ACEP noted that high taxation regime affects Ghana’s ability to attract businesses and makes Ghana’s economy an unattractive business destination.
The energy think-tank wants government to consider the hardships it is putting Ghanaians through and ease the burden.
“Ghanaians are being asked to pay much more. We least expected that Ghana will go outside the developing bracket,” the Executive Director of ACEP, Amin Adam, expressed disappointment at a press conference in Accra last week.
According to the energy think tank, an IMF’s ex-pump prices for petroleum products for developing countries range between 22 and 30 percent. But the recent taxes on petroleum products in Ghana, according to ACEP, are more than 40 percent in levies.
Government said the January 1, 2016 adjustment in the prices of petroleum products were between 18 and 28 percent. ACEP however said government deceived Ghanaians, insisting that, Ghanaians are being punished with a 33-percent increase in petrol prices and 40 percent for diesel.
The Executive Director said government has introduced the Special Petroleum Tax – a tax it says constitutes double taxation.
“The price of petroleum products is arrived at after government embeds several taxes. Yet after the price has been determined, government now imposes another 17.5% tax known as the Special Petroleum Tax,” he noted.
“Tax on tax because the Special Petroleum Tax is a tax on ex-pump price, which already contains all these levies and taxes,” he said, adding that, this amounts to double taxation.
