Chairman for the Parliamentary Select Committee on Communication and Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Mr. Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, has stated that his Committee is not aware of the 5 percent tariff increase by the Telecommunications Companies.
He indicated that the Ghana Chamber of Communications (GCC) and the various service providers (AirtelTigo, MTN, and Vodafone) did not talk about tariff increase when they appeared before the committee in Parliament.
Speaking to ghanajustice.com in an interview at Parliament, Mr. Agyapong pointed out that the Committee, upon meeting the telecommunications companies and the GCC, discussed the complaints of consumers on call drops.
“The service providers and the Chamber of Communications came to the committee and explained to us about how they will solve the call drops. They informed us about how they will improve on their service. The service providers came with their professionals and showed us graphs and blueprints of how they will strategise to improve their service. They never told the committee about any tariff increase of 5 percent”, he said.
Mr. Agyapong explained that he was taken aback when the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GCC, Mr. Ken Ashigbe, announced the 5 percent increment on call rates and other services by the network service providers.
He however, added that the committee will invite the GCC and the telecommunication companies to explain the reason for the tariff increase of 5 percent.
Mr. Agyapong reiterated that taxes should not be shifted to the consumer alone since the service providers can spread the percentage to both consumers and operators.
The 5 percent tariff increase
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Chamber of Communications, Mr. Ken Ashigbe, last week, announced the 5 percent increase in tariff on call rates and other services by the telecommunications companies.
He explained that the increase has become necessary following the recalibration of the Value Added Tax (VAT) and the implementation of the National Health Insurance Levy (NHIL ACT 971) and Ghana Education Trust Fund Levy (GETFL ACT 972).
The mid-year budget review saw the separation of the 5 percent Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) and National Health Insurance Levies (NHIL) from the VAT and charged as straight ones.
GETFund in the Mid-Year Fiscal and Economic Policy Review covered 2.5 percent straight tax whilst NHIL covered 2.5 percent straight tax. However, VAT stood at 12.5 percent.
Source: GhanaJustice/S.Ayisi
