Dumsor Levy; JM Has Beaten A Shameful Retreat -Minority

The Minority Caucus in Parliament has launched a blistering attack on the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government led by President Mahama over its sudden postponement of the controversial Energy Sector Levies (Amendment) Act, 2025 popularly dubbed the “Dumsor Levy”, calling the move a “shameful retreat” that exposes the administration’s “fundamental incompetence and hypocrisy.”

In a statement signed by Minority Leader Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, on June 14, 2025 the Minority condemned the Ghana Revenue Authority’s directive issued a day earlier to indefinitely delay in the implementation of the Energy Sector Shortfall and Debt Repayment Levy (ESSDRL), which was initially set to take effect on June 16, 2025.

“This eleventh-hour postponement epitomises this Government’s chaotic and fundamentally inconsistent approach to economic governance,” the statement read.

DOUBLE STANDARDS

The Minority accused the NDC-led administration of double standards, stating that it is “thoroughly reprehensible and profoundly hypocritical” for a government that once criticised the Akufo-Addo administration for attributing economic struggles to global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, to now use the Middle East crisis to justify its policy indecision.

“They categorically accused President Akufo-Addo of lacking the requisite competence to navigate Ghana through international crises.

“Today, scarcely months into their own tenure, they are adopting precisely the same rhetoric they once denounced,” the Minority added.

NO STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

The group further lambasted the government’s decision-making process, suggesting that the levy was passed without proper stakeholder engagement.

They argued that the decision to delay implementation, following consultations that should have occurred earlier, highlights a broader governance failure rooted in improvisation.

“This postponement starkly exposes the Government’s woeful lack of preparedness and its fundamental failure to conduct proper stakeholder consultation prior to hastily enacting legislation,” the statement said.

The Minority did not only criticise the delay, but rejected the levy outright, describing it as “punitive” and “economically counterproductive”, at a time when Ghanaians are already reeling from high inflation and a harsh cost-of-living crisis.

“At a juncture when Ghanaians are contending with harsh cost-of-living pressures, the introduction of supplementary fuel levies, which inevitably generate cascading effects upon transportation costs, food prices, and all essential commodities represents not merely insensitive policymaking, but economically counterproductive governance.”

REPEL

The Caucus is now demanding the immediate repeal of the Energy Sector Levies (Amendment) Act under a certificate of urgency, describing the government’s decision to delay implementation as “wholly inadequate.”

“The citizens of Ghana merit governance superior to an administration that imposes punitive taxation only to postpone implementation when confronted with legitimate public opposition.”

Beyond the levy itself, the Minority raised alarm over the worsening state of Ghana’s energy sector, pointing fingers at what it calls the government’s “incompetent management” of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the broader power supply network.

“The deteriorating state of Ghana’s power supply under this administration cannot and must not be attributed to the absence of this levy,” the statement said.“Any worsening of the current power situation must be laid squarely at the feet of this Government’s incompetent management.”

ECG

They called for urgent and comprehensive reforms at ECG, citing operational inefficiencies, unregulated power consumption, expired prepaid meters, and massive revenue losses.

The Minority demanded that the Minister for Energy and Green Transition immediately present all policy documents on the stalled Loss Reduction Programme initiated under the previous Akufo-Addo administration to Parliament for scrutiny.

“Communities across the country continue to make increasingly desperate appeals for prepaid meters, whilst countless others remain perilously exposed to unregulated power consumption with its attendant catastrophic revenue implications.”

The Minority also accused President Mahama’s government of betraying the very promises it made to the electorate.

According to the group, the introduction of the Dumsor Levy is a direct contradiction of the NDC’s electoral pledge to ease the financial burden on Ghanaians.

“This levy directly contradicts His Excellency President John Mahama’s electoral commitments and further underscores his government’s profound disconnection from the harsh economic realities confronting ordinary citizens.”

The Minority reiterated its total rejection of the Energy Sector Levy and urged the Ghanaian public to rally behind its call for a complete repeal.

“The Government must forthwith convene Parliament under certificate of urgency to repeal this legislation in its entirety.

“Any response falling short of complete repeal shall prove unacceptable both to the Minority and to the people of Ghana,” the statement warned.

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