FOUR civil society organisations (CSOs) have proposed a GH¢1.65 reduction in fuel prices per litre for two months, instead of the four-week period suggested by the government.
According to the CSOs, after the two-month period, government should review the intervention in line with prevailing global economic conditions.
This was contained in a joint press statement issued yesterday by IMANI Africa, COPEC Ghana, INSTEPR and the Institute for Energy Security (IES).
The statement noted that while some actors within the civil society space believe the relief should be more substantial, given the level of inefficiencies within the downstream petroleum sector, it must not, however, have a corrosive effect on operations and the sustainability of the petroleum subsector.
“At its last Cabinet meeting, the President, H.E. John Dramani Mahama, directed the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Finance to review the petroleum price build-up to recommend possible reductions in taxes, margins and levies to provide temporary relief for Ghanaians during these difficult and uncertain times.
“After extensive consultation, we recommend that the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Energy consider the following reductions in the price build-up,” the statement said.
It added that the recommendation should not overly burden the country’s fiscal space, noting that government is expected to benefit from a significant windfall from crude oil production and exports within the period under review.
“Further, it is also our collective position that the Ministries of Finance and Energy should consider a more comprehensive solution to the country’s perennial fuel price escalations by addressing the following:
“A thorough rationalisation of all existing taxes, levies and margins to permanently remove those that place a burden on individual and national resources,” it said.
The statement further urged government to establish a Strategic Reserve Fund by revisiting some existing levies, the proceeds of which could be used to purchase and store fuel to stabilise the domestic market during unforeseen price shocks.
It also called for the modernisation and retooling of the country’s refinery and storage infrastructure through sustained investment in the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) and the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST), to enable them to refine more of the country’s crude oil and improve storage capacity.
“This was a promise made by the President at his last engagement with the CSOs,” it added.
BY TIMES REPORTER
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