Ghana’s parliamentary minority caucus has demanded an immediate repeal of the controversial Energy Sector Levies (Amendment) Act 2025, which introduced a Gh¢1 levy on every litre of petroleum products.
Although the government, through the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), has decided to suspend the new levy, which was to take effect today, June 16, 2025, the Minority believes suspending it is not enough.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Minority condemned the government’s action to postpone the full rollout of the levy, describing it as a “chaotic, inconsistent approach to economic governance”.
The Minority noted that the eleventh-hour U-turn epitomizes a trial-and-error strategy and reveals a disturbing lack of stakeholder engagement before the passage of the law.
The government’s attempt to justify the decision by citing global crude oil price volatility due to the Israel-Iran conflict was strongly condemned by the Minority as hypocrisy and dishonesty.
The statement suggested that this same government strongly criticized the then-ruling government for ascribing economic difficulties to global events and is now using the same sentiments to justify its own policy incoherence.
The Minority Caucus called for an immediate parliamentary recall to repeal the law, describing its postponement as “wholly inadequate”. Many have expressed the view that the “Energy Sector Levy”, fondly called the “Dumsor Levy”, was a terrible idea from the onset.
At a time when Ghanaians are suffering from the high cost of living, imposing a new fuel tax has been described as economically unsustainable.
The Minority said the government’s argument to postpone the law indefinitely is an insulting half-measure.
“This postponement is not a solution. It is a shameful retreat that exposes this government’s inconsistencies and hypocrisy,” he pointed out.
Source: https://energynewsafrica.com
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