The Assin Central legislator said his business was under attack because of his decision to run for president.
The maverick NPP fighter has alleged that state institutions are obstructing and intimidating him in his bid to contest and lead the party in the 2024 elections.
Then Mr. Agyapong said that he was never harassed like that in the government, but it was his own government that did that.
But the GRA quickly responded to the MP’s allegations explaining in a statement that the officials had carried out their duties in accordance with the guidelines of the World Customs Organization, ensuring adherence to best practices.
The authorities also said that the claims of an impartial audit of the MP company’s accounts were false.
“The purpose of these audits is to measure and improve compliance when managing controls. The factory in question along with other companies were then audited to check the value of the imported goods and their intended use. We would like to announce that in January and February 2023, about thirty (30) such risk-based activities were carried out in several businesses.“, said in the release.
“GRA wants to categorically deny certain allegations of harassment in factories under construction owned by MP. We would like to clarify that as part of GRA’s mandate and in line with World Customs Organization (WCO) guidelines to ensure adherence to best practices; such training is regularly implemented.”
Read the GRA’s full statement below:
ALLEGED HON. KENNEDY APPONGOBY GRA
The management of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has seen the recording of a media interview by the Member of Parliament (MP) for Assin Central constituency, His Excellency Kennedy Agyapong which is circulating on social media where he accused GRA Officials of continuous harassment through unauthorized audits. his company.
GRA wants to categorically deny certain allegations of harassment in factories under construction owned by MP. We would like to clarify that as part of GRA’s mandate and in line with World Customs Organization (WCO) guidelines to ensure adherence to best practices; such training is regularly implemented. The purpose of the audit is to measure and improve compliance while maintaining control. The factory in question along with other companies were then audited to check the value of the imported goods and their intended use.
We would like to announce that in January and February 2023, about thirty (30) such risk-based activities were carried out in several businesses. Furthermore, in terms of enforcement and compliance, the GRA conducts invoicing exercises to ensure Value Added Tax (VAT) is paid by VAT registered businesses. The exercise requires station staff at VAT-registered business premises such as shops, restaurants and manufacturing sites to check the issuance of VAT invoices.
In September 2022, the invigilation exercise will be enhanced nationwide to enforce the issuance of VAT invoices and encourage people who purchase patronage goods and services to request VAT invoices. The exercise was a great success and GRA intends to expand the invoice surveillance exercise from April 2023 as part of its revenue mobilization efforts.
In carrying out all these enforcement and compliance activities, GRA staff are encouraged to remain professional and act with integrity as required by the Authority’s Code of Ethics and Conduct.
Therefore we encourage any member of the public who has any evidence of alleged corrupt practices by Authority officials to report such criminal acts to the GRA Management at 0800-900-110 for redress.
Management would like to use this opportunity to assure Honorable Kennedy Agyapong and all taxpayers of our readiness to receive complaints and feedback on our work as we partner in revenue mobilization for national development. We would also like to state that the GRA remains committed to carrying out its revenue mobilization mandate with utmost integrity, fairness and professionalism.
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION AND PUBLICITY