Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, the Finance Minister has fired back at the former finance minister Amin Adam after he claimed the betting tax was never implemented.
Cassiel Ato Forson fired Amin Adam for not being on top of the issue.
Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, the Finance Minister yesterday 11 March 2025 reiterated, that the Mahama government will scrap the E-levy, Emission levy, betting tax and other taxes.
According to Ato Forson, the government attempt to review the Value Added Tax system, and the government will also eventually abolish the COVID-19 levy.
Speaking during the 2025 budget reading Ato Forson stated, “Mr Speaker, we will abolish the 10% withholding tax on winnings from lottery, otherwise known as the ‘Betting Tax’; we will abolish the Electronic Transfer Levy (E-Levy) of 1%; we will abolish the Emission Levy on industries and vehicles; we will abolish the VAT on motor vehicle insurance policy; and we will abolish the 1.5% withholding tax on winning of unprocessed gold by small-scale miners”.
“Mr. Speaker, the removal of these taxes will ease the burden on households and improve their disposable incomes. In addition, it will support business growth and improve tax compliance”, he added.
The Minority has accused the government’s 2025 Fiscal Policy, saying the Mahama government has lied about key tax reforms introduced in the 2025 budget.
Addressing the media after the presentation of the 2025 Budget Statement and Economic Policy, former Finance Minister, Dr. Amin Adam, accused the government of deceiving Ghanaians by announcing the abolition of VAT on motor insurance and betting tax.
He argued that these taxes were never implemented under the previous NPP administration, making their so-called removal misleading.
“Betting tax that they claim to have abolished, we never collected it. It was never implemented. So, telling Ghanaians that you have removed something that never existed is pure deception,” he stated.
Reacting to Amin Adam comments on JOYNEWS, Ato Forson stated, “I don’t think he is on top of that matter, because my checks reveal, that it was implemented, in the second half of 2024, and my check also revealed that, to date, the government of Ghana has collected over GHS80 million from betting tax.
So I don’t know what he is talking about it is not the fact, the facts on the ground do not support his assertion. The betting tax was implemented”.
Meanwhile, some Ghanaians have stated even before the first quarter of 2024, they were already taking the tax years before.
“Even before that first quarter of 2024, they were already taking the tax years before.
Now we want to know who was taking the taxes before it got implemented on 13th August,2024. Because we’ve been paying throughout the year 2023”, he stated.
Another wrote, “It’s fair to say Dr Amin doesn’t know he was the Finance minister because he was just the face of the ministry while Ken Ofori Atta was still in Charge. He was just presenting what was given to him by the Cartel family and friends. The country was run like a Ponzi scheme”.
Watch the video below:
The past government collected over GHS80 million from betting tax; Dr. Amin Adam not on top of issue – Ato Forson fires back #Budget2025 pic.twitter.com/mCdy1a8KIm
— JoyNews (@JoyNewsOnTV) March 11, 2025
