<<Print>>

The Executive Secretary of the Ghana Free Zones Authority (GFZA), Michael Okyere Baafi has said the Kpone Katamanso Municipal Assembly is not responsible for soliciting funds meant for property taxes from companies within the free zones enclave.

According to him, the Kpone Katamanso Municipal Assembly does not have the right to demand the GFZA to pay their taxes.

Speaking in an Interview with Citi News’ Mr. Okyere Baafi questioned the locus of the Municipal Assembly to demand the payment of taxes adding that they should channel their grievances through the appropriate quarters.
Micheal Okyere Baafi further accused the municipal authority of bypassing protocol in an attempt to put out their concerns.

“You cannot enter my territory and tell my staff to sit down, come to us and let’s have a discussion. You cannot write to them directly without our knowledge. What right do you have to write to them? What is your locus? How can you write to the Free zones enterprises without the free zones authority? It is not done anywhere.”

Mr. Micheal Okyere Baafi was of the view that residents of the area should have appropriately channeled their grievances through the Ministry of trade to the Ghana free zone authority.

“You could have even written to your ministry, to write to the minister of trade. But you cannot just stand up and go straight to the enclave and write to them. We are only saying that we should do the right thing.”

Background

A group residents of the Kpone Katamanso Municipality in the Greater Accra Region, petitioned the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Marfo over what they describe as an abuse of office by the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Free Zones Board, Michael Okyere Baafi.

The group said some companies in the Ghana Free Zones Enclave have refused to pay their property tax to the municipal assembly, a situation which they say is affecting revenue mobilization in the area.

The municipality thus sent the matter to court earlier this year to demand the taxes from the companies.

The judgment by the Tema High Court delivered on the 25th of May 2018 indicated that the companies in the enclave are not exempted from the tax as they have been made to believe, hence must honour their property tax obligations to the municipality.