CP paid no tax to gov't - GRA

Mr. Kaleo Rogation Adams, Deputy Commissioner of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), has said the Authority has no evidence to show that Construction Pioneers (CP) paid tax while operating in Ghana.

Testifying before the Judgement Debt Commission on Wednesday, Mr. Adams, who is in charge of the Large Tax Office under the Domestic Tax Division of GRA, disclosed that CP did not fulfill its ‘Pay As You Earn’(PAYE) tax obligations, which was mandatory.

He said when the GRA pursued officials of CP to fulfill its tax obligations; they failed to do so, as they referred to an agreement with the Government of Ghana which absolved the company from honouring the PAYE.

He said the GRA was, however, adamant in accepting the CP’s claim as there was no parliamentary approval in connection to the said tax waiver.

“But the GRA was made to stop chasing the money as lawyers of CP notified it of an impending legal tussle over the issue both in Ghana and abroad,” he explained.

Mr. Adams, therefore, produced some correspondence between GRA and CP for the Judgement Debt Commission over the issue.

Mr. Justice Yaw Appau, the Sole Commissioner at the Judgement Debt Commission, promised to help the GRA with information regarding some companies that appeared before the Commission and were in default of paying taxes.

Mr. Kwesi Bentsi-Enchill, Chief Valuer in-charge of compensation at the Lands Commission, also appeared before the Commission over some valuation works conducted by the Commission with regard to the construction of pedestrian walkways along the Asafo Interchange Project in Kumasi.

Documents covering such valuation works, which led to payment of compensation to properties that were affected as a result of the construction was, however, not readily available to be tendered to the Commission and Mr. Enchill promised to produce them on Tuesday, May 27, 2014.

Mr. Ernest Ahene, Acting Area Manager at the Ghana Railway Company Limited in Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region also appeared before the Commission, but failed to testify, explaining that, he was not the right authority to comment on the issue.