570 Basic Schools to be Covered under Citizenship Week Celebration CWC on Tax Education NCCE-UER

   

About 570 basic schools in the Upper East are to be schooled on taxes as part of this year’s Constitutional Week Celebration CWC under the sub theme: “Our Taxes build a Great Ghana”. 

This was disclosed by the Regional Director of National Commission for Civic Education, NCCE Mr. P. P. Apaabey at a media encounter held in Bolgatanga. 

The Citizens Week Celebration was instituted by the NCCE in 2012 as part of the annual Constitutional Week Celebration.  

The move is in fulfillment of the commission’s mandate of creating and sustaining the awareness of the principles and objectives of the 1992 constitution. In an interview with GBConline, Mr. Apaabey explained that the citizenship week celebration seeks to remind pupils and students of their responsibilities as active citizens and the role they can play as future leaders to build a strong, vibrant and democratic country.  

The citizens week celebration, he noted also provides a platform for eminent personalities who are role models of society to interact and impart virtues of good citizenship to pupils in the basic schools.

Mr. Apaabey added that the CW will set the agenda for the school children to join in raising the needed awareness on Tax compliance and to also imbibed in them the culture of paying tax as they grow up to become responsible adults. 

He emphasized that the focus will be on changing attitudes through children, by catching them young. 

The motive he stressed will draw the attention of citizens to the spirit of patriotism to heighten public awareness of the relevance and benefits of paying taxes as a civic responsibility for the development of Ghana. 

He further explained that, Article 41 (J) of the 1992 constitution enjoins every citizen to declare his or her income to right and lawful agencies and to satisfy all tax obligations. 

As a result, the Ghana Revenue Authority, under the Act of parliament 2009, Act 791 merged with the Customs Excise and Preventive Services, CEPS, the Internal Revenue Service, the Value Added Tax, VAT and the Revenue Agencies Board, RAGB Secretariat into one Authority for the administration of taxes and customs duties in the country.

Story by : GBC Emmanuel Akayeti