Political scientist and Head of the Centre for European Studies at the University of Ghana, Dr. Kwame Asah Asante has expressed concerns over inconsistencies in the NPP’s position on the scrapping of the betting tax in the 2025 budget statement.
Dr. Asante questioned the NPP’s previous campaign claim that former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia would abolish the betting tax. He found it contradictory that the then government was making such a promise if the tax was not already in existence.
“If the [betting tax] did not exist, what were you going to abolish? It did exist. And except that the [NPP] was being disingenuous, relative to the issue we are discussing.”
“In government, you proceed with integrity and in truth so that we follow you and believe in what you are saying.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
As a political scientist, Dr. Asante defended the role of taxation in strengthening state capacity.
“One of the things we look out for when dealing with state capacity is the ability of the state to raise revenue to run its affairs. [Not] When you have a challenge, then you go globetrotting with a cap in hand looking for financial resources.”
“I have always been on the side of supporting taxation, but my problem has always been the incidence of taxation. We always want to see that the burden would not be too much for the ordinary person to bear.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Dr. Asante criticized the previous government’s failure to properly utilize tax revenues.
“We take a lot of taxes, but one challenge we have is the use of taxation. We want to urge this government to put these taxes into effective use.”
“If you read the budget, they talk about the fact that the previous government abused some of these things. We want a paradigm shift in this regard so that taxation will be realized and used for the purpose for which we take them.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Focus on agriculture, he cautioned that merely mentioning agriculture as a priority was not enough but should be accompanied by tangible actions accorded with financial discipline.
He pointed out key challenges in agricultural development that the government must address. He highlighted the need for the government to prioritize the issue of lands, farm inputs procurement to help tackle some of the agricultural crisis in the country. He also highlighted issues such as post-harvest losses and market access for farmers. He said;
“You encourage people to produce, but at the end of the day, there’s no market for them. So, I expect them to do something in this regard.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Promotion of Made-in-Ghana Products
Moreover, Dr. Asante touched on the government’s call for Ghanaians to patronize locally made products.
“The government says they want to encourage the consumption of Made-in-Ghana goods. This we have heard time and again. And this time around, we want to see a change in that type of conversation.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
He specifically referenced Ghana’s dependence on imported food items.
“We should reduce the import of rice. In recent times, I’ve learned that we spend about $8 million a year to import onion from Burkina Faso… All these things must cease.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Dr. Asante urged the current government to fulfill its promise of reducing expenditure and eliminating financial waste.
“Every government will want to tell us that they aim to reduce expenditure. But what we see at the end of the day is bloated expenditure and financial waste.”
“The Auditor-General’s report is there with a lot of figures that we see all the time. This time around, we want to make sure that we hold the government accountable for what it says.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Support for the Gold Board Initiative
As part of the 2025 budget on the Gold Board Initiative, Dr. Asante expressed support for the establishment of the Gold Board, a regulatory body to oversee gold sales and mining activities.
He emphasized the need for structured monitoring of gold transactions to curb illegal mining.
“We should have a body that will say, ‘look, you can only sell at this point.’ And when you do, the government can track where you got the license from and how you managed the process to the extent that you are now selling.”
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante Political Scientist
Dr. Kwame Asah Asante’s critique highlights major concerns about governance, taxation, national security, and economic policies in Ghana.
His call for integrity in government actions, effective tax utilization, and strategic economic planning underscores the importance of accountability in ensuring national progress.
As Ghana moves forward, he urges the government to match its words with actions to build a more sustainable and prosperous nation.
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