Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Youth Authority (NYA), Pius Enam Hadzide, has expressed enthusiasm regarding the government’s recent introduction of a 10% tax on winnings from betting and lotteries.
He highlighted that this tax serves as a deterrent to gambling, particularly among the youth.
During an interview on Citi TV’s program, “The Point of View,” on Monday, he emphasized the importance of this tax in discouraging youth engagement in gambling.
Mr. Hadzide pointed out that it is vital for a nation to steer its youth away from excessive involvement in gambling, as it poses risks to their well-being.
“We have been concerned about the increasing incidences of gambling that is 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. 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 quick 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 disincentivize 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. 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 disincentivize gambling.”
In a related development, Mr. Hadzide has taken a strong stance against the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) for their critique of the newly imposed 10% betting tax.
The government’s introduction of this tax, as part of its revenue generation efforts, has faced significant criticism and raised concerns.
The NDC’s youth wing, led by National Youth Organizer George Opare Addo, issued a statement outlining a series of actions aimed at pressuring the government to revoke the 10% betting tax.
The party perceives this taxation policy as onerous, with adverse effects on both the country’s youth and the broader betting industry.
Speaking on Eyewitness News with Selorm Adonoo, Pius Hadzide stated, “I am pretty much scandalized listening to the NDC, with the impression they are creating. If there is a problem with employment, in the NDC’s view, young people should resort to betting as a means of resolving whatever challenges young people are confronted with. I am scandalized.”
“Let me just place on record that it is not just the Majority Leader Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, who has issues with betting and what betting can do to the value system of any country. Even the Minority Leader, Ato Forson, has called on the state to ban all forms of betting.”
The CEO of the NYA lambasted the NDC for instigating the youth to fight the government.