Dr. Bawumia is mocking himself unintentionally. His comment on GRA is classic example

As political campaigns heat up and we move into the main election campaigns for the upcoming general elections this year soon, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia appears to be mocking himself unintentionally.

In fact, Dr. Bawumia has completely lost his vitality in Ghanaian politics. He is trying extremely hard to regain that by attacking the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) at a recently held event with the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and Industry members (GNCCI) and also the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) on March 20, 2024.

However, this was a self-inflicted political harm as Dr. Bawumia’s unprovoked attack on the GRA for ‘harassing businesses with unrealistic targets’ was avoidable on that occasion in my opinion.

As Dr. Bawumia wants Ghanaians to believe, I have a few rhetorical questions for him. Who is the one who gives estimated targets to or wants the GRA to collect revenue on behalf of the state? Is that not the government of the day? Is the Vice President Bawumia saying that he is unaware of this century-old practice?

Dr. Bawumia has not only shot himself in the foot with his embarrassing attack on the GRA but also mocking himself unintentionally.

The dismissing responses from the NDC Minority in Parliament and the rebuttal from management of the GRA regarding Dr. Bawumia’s disparaging comment on the latter were apt as the Vice President was clearly insincere and appeared opportunistic at that occasion.

This government led by Nana Akufo-Addo and Dr. Bawumia championed imposition of many taxes including the controversial e-levy, etc. on Ghanaians. When the NPP was in opposition, Dr. Bawumia strongly supported a business-friendly tax regime, which never came to pass under his watch now.

Akufo-Addo and Dr. Bawumia also told Ghanaians in opposition that their government would move away from taxation to production. These campaign promises were premised on the fact that the previous Mahama-led government was mismanaging the economy and burdening people and businesses with more taxes.

The outgone Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta also sang the same song of economic mismanagement interspersed with more borrowing, inflation, and taxing businesses under the erstwhile Mahama-led regime and this was going to be reversed under the Akufo-Addo’s government. Rather after coming into office, this Akufo-Add-Bawumia-led regime has even borrowed and taxed people and businesses more than the previous governments in the 4^th Republic.

Is it not illogical for Dr. Bawumia to chastise the GRA for collecting taxes that this same Akufo-Addo-Bawumia-led passed and now the Vice President is promising a ‘clean start’ with tax amnesty proposition?

The timely rebuttal from the GRA management to the effect that they don’t deliberately set unrealistic targets and harass businesses with taxes was in order, as the Vice President was obviously trying to please members of the GNCCI and GBA instead of listening to their concerns.

If the Akufo-Addo’s government refuses to cut government expenditure and the Vice president Bawumia is centrally part of it, he cannot turn around to blame GRA of sabotage.

Dr. Bawumia has mocked himself by attempting to run down GRA in the open and Ghanaians are smart to notice his insincerity and failure in the management of Ghana’s economy.