Equality before the laws is an established principle. Discrimination under the law is defined under as follows:
“…. affording different treatment to different persons attributable wholly or mainly to their respective descriptions by race, colour, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status whereby persons of one such description are subjected to disabilities or restrictions to which persons of another such description are not made subject, or are accorded privileges or advantages which are not accorded to persons of another such description.”
Those who import bags of cement from Senegal have told Foroyaa that VAT charges plus import processing fees used to be set at D30,000 per thousand bags. They claim that their transports are stuck at the border because of inability to pay the newly imposed tariff of D180 per bag instead of D30 per bag.
What Foroyaa is still finding difficult to establish is whether the D180 amounts to an increase in VAT and processing fees or not. This is the crux of the matter.
Section 149 of the Constitution is clear. It states:
“No taxation shall be imposed except by or under the authority of an Act of the National Assembly.”
The government through the Minister of Trade should clarify what the charges imposed on the cement importers constitute.
Foroyaa will continue to monitor this important issue since the livelihoods of thousands are linked to such a case.
