A petition from the political pressure group Arise Ghana, requesting that the government adopt “pragmatic steps to ease the suffering of the people of Ghana,” was sent to the Ministry of Finance.
To support the Ghanaian people, the group demands that the government immediately revoke the Electronic Transaction Levy (E-levy), as well as take action to lower inflation and stop the depreciation of the cedi. The group is also pleading with the government to act quickly to eliminate levies and taxes that it claims are to blame for the soaring cost of food and fuel.
Leading group member Bernard Mornah addressed the petition to two deputy finance ministers John Kumah and Abena Osei Asare on Tuesday, saying, “We call on the Ministry of Finance to scrap the E-Levy that is imposing more hardship on the people of Ghana, siphoning their capital, and above all confiscating our savings.” They continued, “The ministry should act swiftly to ensure that inflation is reduced to the barest minimum to allow the poor with limited resources to afford essential items.
The organization also requests that the government stop bringing up the Agyapa contract in parliament and lower youth unemployment. Although the petition was sent to the Speaker of Parliament, according to Mr. Mornah, the Finance Ministry is in the greatest position to handle its issues. Abena Osei Asare, a deputy minister of finance, told us after the petition was received that the government was already taking action to help the economy of Ghanaians and had already met with key stakeholders to discuss the issues.
The petition was accepted in the Parliament House in Accra by the Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, and the Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu, on behalf of the Speaker of Parliament. According to Mr. Iddrisu, the petition’s contents will be noted by Parliament and addressed.
