By Samuel Ayammah.
President Akufo-Addo has sent a word of caution to professionals across the country who renege on their tax obligations.
He described as worrying the non-compliance with tax laws by a reported number of sixty thousand professionals within the national workforce. He said he finds the situation even more embarrassing that legal practitioners, who are supposed to ensure sanity in the clients’ books, rather spearhead the canker, leading to shortfalls in revenue.
Speaking at the Ghana Bar Conference in the Upper East Regional capital Bolgatanga, President Akufo-Addo said it is high time lawyers began honouring their tax obligation or face the full rigors of the law.
The clarion call by the President comes barely a month after the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) revealed that over 60, thousand business entities and professionals including lawyers have not been paying their taxes.
Meanwhile, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Yeboah Dame, has also appealed to lawyers to pay their taxes. He is of the view that the quantum of taxes paid by lawyers do not commensurate with their luxurious lifestyles and the revenue they generate.
The Chief Justice, Kwesi Anin Yeboah, said the judiciary will continue to collaborate with the BAR to put innovative measures in place to decongest the courts.
It came to light that only 39 lawyers are practicing in the 5 regions of Northern Ghana.
