The Chamber of Petroleum Consumers (COPEC) has voiced strong opposition to the proposed 10-pesewa levy on petroleum products, warning that it could create undue economic pressure on Ghanaians.
His remarks come in response to a recent proposal by the Interior Minister, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, to introduce a 10-pesewa levy on every litre of fuel purchased.
The levy is intended to finance the procurement of fire tenders for the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), which has long struggled with outdated firefighting equipment.
Expressing concerns over the continuous burden placed on fuel consumers, Mr. Amoah highlighted the economic implications of the proposed levy.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Thursday, March 27, 2025, Duncan Amoah, cautioned that the decision to impose the levy could have far-reaching consequences on the economy, particularly on transportation and workers’ earnings.
“Until our political actors appreciate the enormity of pressure on people’s pockets, we will always be looking for quick fixes to our problems, and again, the lowest-hanging fruit will be petroleum. If you do the numbers in an armchair fashion, say have 460 million litres, and we do the 10 pesewas levy, that will be GHC46 million every month, you can easily deduce that we will make money.
“But that GHC46 million you are collecting every month, the cost push factor on your economy could be dire simply because your commercial transport operators will now complain and add on to the transport fares.
“Your workers are going to pay more, which means they will come back to the negotiation table and demand higher salaries. So, on one hand, you are seeking a quick fix, you want the money to be able to retool, but you would have ended up creating an issue that will come back to bite your economy, and you may now be looking for a bigger fix,” he stated.
He further urged the government to engage in broader consultations with Ghanaians to explore other funding mechanisms for essential services.
“So, if he does a consultative process, asking the average Ghanaians what we can do to help the fire service, I am sure he will get some answers. If you don’t get pragmatic and it becomes the easiest and laziest solution, such that you keep adding to fuel prices, once you add, that tax will not go down any longer, and the price of the fuel will also not go down,” he stated.
