The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) has issued a stern warning to the government, urging them to abandon their plans of introducing additional taxes on petroleum products during the mid-year budget review.

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta is scheduled to present the mid-year budget review to Parliament on July 25, 2023.

COPEC says it has obtained information suggesting that the government intends to impose further taxes on fuel, which is already causing significant burden for consumers. The organization emphasizes that such a move would be insensitive and only exacerbate the already difficult situation faced by Ghanaians.

During an appearance on the Breakfast Daily show on Citi TV, Executive Secretary of COPEC, Duncan Amoah, expressed his concern over the potential repercussions of such actions, highlighting the negative impact it would have on the well-being of the Ghanaian population.

COPEC firmly believes that implementing additional taxes on petroleum products would further worsen the plight of citizens.

“What I am even picking up from the budget to be read soon is that if Ghanaians are not lucky, there will be newer taxes… But we will issue a warning here. If government dares us, we will dare them this time. I mean, it’s already crazy. We are trying. When it comes to austerity, what governments across the world will try to do is to provide support and reliefs.”

“But when you are in austerity, and you are taxing even more, you are simply shuttering people’s livelihoods. This is going to be crazy for people. But beyond this, if you are getting new attempts to slap taxes on petrol, which is already high, then the insensitivity, the misalignment. He is probably not diagnosing the problem properly to be able to proffer solutions properly,” he stated.