According to Pius Enam Hadzide, CEO of the National Youth Authority (NYA), the New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration should be commended for its new taxation of gambling.
He claimed that gambling is ruining Ghanaian society and interfering with children’s education.
All parents, he said, should be concerned about the prevalence of gambling because it is affecting Ghanaian society’s values.
Pius Hadzide claims that instead of working hard to earn money, Ghanaians have suddenly developed a taste for quick cash.
The former deputy minister of information defended the government’s 10% gambling tax during an interview with Citi TV on August 21.
“We have been concerned about the increasing incidences of gambling that are affecting even the education of children. Our assessment is that when you go to many of these betting sites, you see young people in uniforms betting.
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“We have developed the culture that the Ghanaian is known as one who is hardworking, one who is committed to decent work and honest work. Those are our values. This idea of young people attempting to get rich quickly is a dangerous path to chart for any country in the long term.”
“So we have always advocated that the government should take steps to discourage gambling. We were looking at both legislative and physical measures, such as tax measures, to discourage and disincentivise people from indulging in excessive betting, especially now that our own research has indicated that the vast majority of the youth in our country are drifting into that area. In our view, it is a ticking time bomb.”
Thus, Pius Hadzide urged those who were opposed to the move to reconsider and to commend the government for enacting the tax as a disincentive to end the problem.
“So we applaud the government because we have brought up this matter before past and present officers of state, and we are excited that the government is finally listening to us and implementing measures to disincentivise gambling,” he added.
The government has been urged to immediately repeal the 10% withholding tax that was recently imposed on all gross gaming winnings, according to the NDC Youth Wing.
