COPEC kicks against new taxes on petroleum products
The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) has urged Parliament to kick against the government’s plans to introduce Sanitation and Pollution Levy, which will charge 10 pesewas per litre of petrol/diesel.
Duncan Amoah, the executive secretary of COPEC, said Ghanaians were already paying too much for petroleum products and should not be overburdened with new fuel taxes.
Amoah said Ghana was losing GHC1.9 billion annually through fuel smuggling because of loopholes in the petroleum value chain and urged the government to plug those loopholes rather than introduce new fuel taxes.
He said fuel prices had increased by 17% over the past two months from GHC4.7 per litre to GHC5.45.
He asked the government to put the necessary measures in place to ensure the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) functioned efficiently so that petroleum products could be processed locally, which would go a long way to reduce the cost of fuel in the country.
Amoah also called for a review of the Price Stabilisation and Recovery Levy since the purpose of its introduction was not being adhered to by the government.
Meanwhile, Nana Amoasi VII, the Executive Director of the Institute for Energy Security, has said 50% of the prices of fuel were made up of taxes.
He said if the current increase in petroleum products continued, Ghanaians would be paying GHc40 per gallon of petrol by 2024.
During the presentation of the 2021 Budget Statement to Parliament on Friday, March 12, Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the Caretaker Finance Minister and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, announced the government’s intention to charge 10 pesewas on a litre of petrol/diesel to manage sanitation and pollution challenges in the country.
