Abide by our laws if you want to remain in business - Ghana’s Communication Minister, Ursula Owusu threatens telcos

Ghana’s Communications Minister Ursula Owusu-Ekuful says mobile telecommunications companies that want to keep operating in Ghana must be prepared to comply with the laws of the land or face sanctions.

Mrs Owusu-Ekuful was speaking at a media engagement held at the Ministry of Information.

The Minister’s comment was in relation to the implementation of the newly adjusted Communications Service Tax (CST) which has created a misunderstanding between the telcos and the Communications Ministry.

The telcos started charging the 9% increased CST from October 1, 2019. The telecommunication companies are therefore charging consumers immediately customers recharge airtime.

However, the government has not been happy with this development since consumers are complaining.

The Communications Ministry said the move by the telcos is a deliberate move to shortchange consumers and also make the government unpopular.

“The regulator would have a conversation with the telcos on this [referring to the implementation of the CST] and if they persist, the requisite sanctions will apply. If they want to continue doing business in this country, they will respect our laws; all of them including the multinationals.

They know better than to flout the laws of the jurisdictions in which they operate as sanctions attached to it.”

The Communications Minister said the telcos are to immediately desist from the immediate deduction of the CST and treat the tax as they would VAT, NHIL and GET Fund levies.