Akufo-Addo orders the elimination of the $7 airport fumigation fee

A $7 fumigation tax at the airport has been proposed, and President Akufo-Addo has instructed the Paul Adom Otchere-led Ghana Airport Company Board and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) to immediately withdraw it.

According to MyNewsGhana.com sources, the President summoned Paul Adom Otchere, Board Chairman of the Ghana Airports Company, following his late-night return from France two nights ago, and ordered a reversal of the policy.

The Ghana Health Service levies a fee per passenger on each foreign airline ticket sold and remits the money to the government organization as a luggage fumigation fee. The President and his sector minister are alleged to be unaware of this.
Already, the minority in parliament is raising concerns about the $7 fee that the administration is imposing on plane tickets as being unconstitutional.
The Minority claims that the fee is unlawful because only Parliament has the authority to establish fees and levies.

Airlines were urged to disobey the government order to impose that fee by Kwame Agbodza, the minority chief whip and ranking member of the Roads and Transport Committee.
The stakeholders have expressed dissatisfaction, and the airlines believe that this will make their work much more challenging given that many airlines and allied industries are still working to recover from COVID.

“You’d realize that airline tickets are still considerably high. To charge this amount for the fumigation of bags is an absurdity. We are not going to accept this.
“No agency of government has the right to impose additional charges without the knowledge of Parliament and I encourage airlines to disregard this for now until we all come to the conclusion that this is relevant,” he said.

If implemented, the imposition of the US$7 fumigation charge will lead to further increases in airfares, which already remain elevated due to high aviation fuel costs, a weak local currency, and a general economic squeeze since last year.

Source: Mynewsghana.com