Finance Minister Ato Forson has refuted claims by his predecessor, Mohammed Amin Adam, that the previous administration never enforced the betting tax.

During a press conference on Tuesday, March 11, shortly after delivering the new government’s first budget, Dr. Forson addressed the matter.

The budget had announced the removal of several levies, including the e-levy and betting tax.

Meanwhile, Dr. Amin Adam insisted that the NPP government never collected the tax on lottery and sports betting winnings, despite its passage in 2023.

He argued that it was misleading for the NDC government to take credit for abolishing a tax that was never implemented.

“Betting tax that they said they have abolished, we never collected Betting Tax. So to come and tell Ghanaians that you have abolished something that you have not implemented, is to deceive the people of Ghana.”

Speaking on PM Express with Evans Mensah on Tuesday night, Finance Minister Ato Forson dismissed Mohammed Amin Adam’s claim, arguing that his predecessor was misinformed on the issue.

According to Dr. Forson, checks indicate that the betting tax was enforced in the latter part of 2024, with government revenue records showing that over GH₵80 million had already been collected from it. He stressed that the facts contradict Dr. Amin Adam’s assertion.

"I don’t think he’s on top of that matter because my checks revealed that it was implemented in the second half of 2024. And my checks also reveal that year-to-date, the government of Ghana has collected over GH₵80 million from betting tax, so I don’t know what he’s talking about. It is not the fact. The fact on the ground does not support his assertion. Clearly, the betting tax was implemented, he insisted.

The betting tax, which imposed a 10% withholding tax on sports betting and lottery winnings, was introduced by the previous administration. While the policy faced widespread opposition, Dr. Amin Adam insists his government never implemented it before leaving office.

During the NPP’s manifesto launch in Takoradi in August 2024, then-presidential candidate Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia reaffirmed his pledge to scrap the E-Levy and betting tax if elected.

He also promised to reduce the withholding tax on small-scale gold exports to 1% to help curb smuggling.

"We’ll also reduce Withholding Tax for small-scale gold exports to 1% to curb smuggling, and abolish the Betting Tax,” Dr Bawumia promised during the party's manifesto launch in Takoradi on August 18, 2024.