The Ghana Revenue Authority is rallying media support towards creating awareness and understanding of the public on taxation, particularly voluntary compliance in tax payment and revenue mobilization for national development.
The media has therefore been urged to develop an interest in issues of taxation and also using their platform to engage citizens on the need to pay their taxes.
Head of the small tax office of the GRA in Tamale, Cephas Agoro, who said this during a soiree for some editors in the Northern Region, said media support to the GRA’s effort would lead to an intensified tax education thereby increasing revenue for the needed national development.
The media interaction, the GRA stated is helping to improve and deepen the relationship between the media and the tax agencies and also further co-operation among the two sides. An assistant commissioner of the Tamale medium tax office, Ebenezer Mensah, in a speech read for him, said his outfit has been reaching out to clients through one-on-one education and targeted tax education among others for better understanding of the tax system, but closely related to such strategy, he added is the imposition of penalties and interest charges and garnishment of accounts of defaulters as the tax laws permit.
An Assistant Commissioner, Custom Division of the GRA, Paul Kwesi Ahiakpor who also chaired the occasion appreciated the partnership that has existed between the Revenue agencies and the media.
For his part, Alahji Rasak Shani, regional director of the NCCE whose outfit together with the GRA are collaborating to reach out to the citizens on their civic responsibilities to paying taxes said the media space must not only be used to change perception of society towards taxation and ensuring national revenue mobilization, but the media must endeavor to hold duty bearers accountable.
