The Abossey Okai Spare Parts Dealers Association has announced its decision to temporarily close down their shops starting from November 1, 2023, to protest the government’s new tax compliance module.
This decision comes as a response to the association’s grievances concerning certain decisions taken to enforce tax compliance and surveillance in their sector.
In a press statement signed and released by the Head of Communications Mr Takyi Addo on October 17, 2023, the traders argue that the tax compliance measures are detrimental to their businesses and livelihoods.
Despite giving the government and the GRA a two-week ultimatum to address their concerns, the association reported that no meaningful engagement has taken place during this period.
“The association has clarified that their demand is not for a suspension but a complete abolishment of the tax compliance policy, which they believe poses a threat to their trade and economic well-being”.
It will be recalled that on October 2, 2023, the association held a press conference to express their dissatisfaction with the government and the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) for not heeding their calls to reconsider the deployment of a compliance task force to monitor tax compliance within their sector.
The association has voiced their strong opposition to the alleged plan by the GRA, describing it as intimidation and a lack of respect towards the association.
The association further clarified that their demand is not for a suspension but a complete abolishment of the tax compliance policy, which they believe poses a threat to their trade and economic well-being.
Mr. Takyi Addo in an exclusive interview with The Ghana Report said “We want GRA to cancel their exercise. We want them to stop the tax compliance exercise whereby they send their officers to our shops. The officers are still coming since 14 August. They monitor our businesses, go through our books, take pictures and videos and we are speaking against this exercise”.
“In fact, we don’t want to see them. We don’t want them[GRA] to suspend the exercise, we want them to abolish it entirely. We pay our monthly taxes regularly so we don’t want any daily monitoring,” Mr Addo added.
Mr Takyi Addo expressed hope that the government will intervene and address their concerns promptly; otherwise, they are prepared to take further actions to protect their interests.
“The Abossey Okai Spare Parts Dealers Association remains committed to engaging in peaceful protests to safeguard their businesses, emphasizing the importance of their contributions to the economy and the well-being of their members”.