The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) has gone after quarry and sand winning companies at Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipality in the Eastern region over tax invasion.
It has so far swooped on five companies, namely E&H Quarry Limited, Atlantic Rock Quarry, China Railways Engineering Quarry Limited, Paul Addai Stone Quarry and Quality Quarry Limited. All but one of these companies are owned by Chinese.
The GRA Enforcement Manager for Accra Central, Mr Joseph Annan, while leading a taskforce to swoop on the companies, told the media the exercise was a continuous action, which started in September this year.
“Compliance really improved when we started in September and that has been evident in our collection. This latest exercise, which puts focus on quarries across the country, is an integral part of the national economy. We have moved our focus from commerce to the quarry sector. Our test purchases have indicated that most operators at quarries do not issue the VAT invoice,” he said.
Mr Annan said on-the-spot assessments alone, done since September this year, has realised more than GH¢800,000 though a lot more assessments are yet to be done.
“We have collected all these for the state and there is a lot more to collect. Through these enforcements, we have the public also giving us alerts on fake invoices. These are great collaborations that the Authority does not take for granted”, he said.
Key items intercepted during the swoop on the five companies earlier mentioned were idle VAT invoices, waybills, company invoices, computer system units, laptops and company documents.
The retrieved documents from these non-compliant companies, according to Mr Annan, would assist in carrying out full scale investigations into the matter to ascertain the amount and extent of revenue loss.
“The CID would conduct their investigations as we do our pre-emptive assessment and recommend them for full audits. After the investigations they would face the Authority’s legal unit for possible prosecution,” he added.
Last week, five Chinese firms, Top Stone Quarry, Uniafrika, Derby Quarry, Orient Quarry, and Massaike & Sabbagh Company Ltd, and one Ghanaian company, Twin Rock Quarry were clamped down in the Shai Osudoku District, for various tax infractions, including non-issuance and selective issuance of VAT receipts.
The GRA had the officials of these companies arrested and are currently undergoing investigations for possible prosecution.
Since September this year, GRA has investigated more than 175 taxpayers, all in a bid to meet its GH¢80.3 billion revenue target.
The Authority had earlier disclosed that it will enforce compliance in the hospitality sector during the festive season to boost revenue.
