GRA Threatens To Close Down Revenue Collection Points If Terkper Dares

Information intercepted by the Punch reveals that the Ghana Revenue Authority [GRA] are threatening to shut down all revenue collection avenues across the country if the Finance Minister fails to reverse a move which will see the GRA as a subvented organization instead of the retention.

A deep throat told our reporter that workers of GRA are angry because the Finance Ministry under the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information Systems [GIFMIS] is trying to stop the about 3 percent of the total monthly revenues of the GRA which is normally accredited to GRA's account for the day to day running of the Authority.

Our closed source [name put on ice], said this distorted field operational activities which indeed, revenue for the month of December 2015 fell below expectation as a result of just two weeks of implementation of the Minister’s directives.

It added that the letter from the Finance ministry to the GRA has sparked huge anger among workers of GRA who are also threatening to stage a nationwide strike if Finance Minister Seth Terkper refuses to rescind his decision.

The letter from Finance Minister indicated that there should be "discontinuation of monthly releases for compensation to retention agencies.”

This directive, according to the workers, means the Minister for Finance is treating the GRA as a subvented organisation which is against the law.

In the minister's letter, he also directed that GRA must take its payroll to the Controller and Accountant Generals Department for payment of all monthly salaries.

But the workers argued that they have nothing to do with Controller and Accountants General’s Department and wants a reversal of these directives by close of 6th January 2016.

Reactions by National Executives of Labour Unions

A meeting was conveyed at the GRA Boardroom on 12^th January, 2016 between the Ghana Revenue Authority Public Service Workers Union of Trade Union Congress [GRA PSWU] and the Ghana Revenue Authority Workers Union of TUC [GRAWU] and top management of GRA to the Finance Minister Seth Terkper to prevent those directives from being implemented by the Finance Minister.

In a counter-reaction sighted by Punch, the organised labour indicated that the directives from the minister are "unacceptable and unprogressive to revenue maximization".

A copy of the letter noted that, “the path this directive is taking us is not new to us.”

According to letter, “we have been there before and it neither grew revenue nor motivated Staff.”

It added that the current Automatic Transfer Model did not only enable the Authority achieve its targets for four consecutive years and also grew revenue by 86percent but also ensured timely availability of funds for the Authority’s operational activities.

The letter added that indeed their slogan as GRA staff has been, “Collect more and Get more.”

Challenges of the old system

During the warrant system years back, the letter however noted that they queued for the release of their retention from the Controller and Accountant General’s Department [CAGD].

According to the letter, the warrant system delayed payment of salaries and operational expenses to offices and stations across the country.

The organised labour expressed that the warrant system also limited customs preventive patrol on our numerous borders.

Staff suffered during this regime and a their arguments were strongly put forward during the era of the former Minister for Finance and Economic Planning Dr. Kwabena Duffour which gave way for the adoption of the current Automatic Transfer Model.

Strong demands by workers

The organised labour is demanding that no action should be taken to distort the status quo on their retention.

They added that the 3percent upper limit as enshrined in Article 21 (2) of the GRA Act and currently in place should be left untouched.

According to the organised labour, GRA is not a subvented organisation but an Authority on retention backed by law.

They added that Article 21 (3) of GRA Act 791 indicates the modes of paying salaries through the retention and the Authority has never abused these positions.

Therefore, staff of the Authority never complained of challenges on the payroll nor its abuse.

“They have always operated under the annual budgets and provisions of the ministry of Finance,” they stated.

Our contemporaries i.e. Bank of Ghana [BoG], Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority, Ghana Civil Aviation Authority, Volta River Authority and GRIDco have not be considered as subvented organisations, why GRA?

A 72 hour ultimatum given to the minister to reverse these directives expired on 14^th January and the paper has gathered that the union workers are planning to take very drastic measures to prevent those directives from being implemented including embarking on a strike.