Thursday, 5th June, 2025
Hon Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings
Korle Klottey
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to make a Statement on the need to implement multidimensional measures to address the disturbing trends in cybercrime cases that are plaguing our society, particularly through social media platforms.
This issue hits close to home, as I have personally encountered, and still do, multiple fraudulent accounts across various social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp, which I have had to report to the Cyber Security Authority and the Ghana Police Service repeatedly. This is in spite of having verified accounts on all aforementioned platforms.
One major challenge is that the various platforms take a while to respond to reports of fake accounts, in spite of having received the verified accounts of various persons and several fake accounts are opened daily by criminals. These malicious actors not only impersonate public figures but also deceive and exploit unsuspecting individuals, causing severe financial and reputational harm.
Ghana needs more stringent and targeted legislation in place to protect individuals on these platforms and the greater public should have more education on safety online.
This disturbing trend extends nationwide, affecting not only Members of Parliament but other citizens as well. The consequences are dire, tarnishing hard-earned reputations and eroding trust in our digital interactions.
Despite commendable efforts by the Cybersecurity Authority and the Ghana Police Service, including recent highprofile crackdowns, many of these cyber criminals manage to evade justice, escaping prosecution due to what appears to be a disconnect between the modus operandi of our court systems and the extremely fluid and high-tech nature of cybercrime.
There have been instances where individuals, in spite of overwhelming evidence to their complicity in these crimes committed, were released and equipment which was used in criminal activity, containing evidence of same, released back to them on the orders of the court.
Mr Speaker, clearly, this would create a scenario where criminals would feel a sense of impunity as they continue to operate on a daily basis, destroying reputations and causing damage to individuals financially and psychologically.
Mr Speaker, addressing this growing cyber fraud crisis demands a proactive and comprehensive approach. Of key importance is enhanced interagency collaboration between the Ghana Police Service Intelligence Unit, the Bureau of National Communications, the Cyber Security Authority (CSA), and other relevant agencies. Effective intelligence sharing and coordinated operations are essential to identify swiftly and apprehend these criminals operating within our borders.
Some high-profile incidents in Ghana underscore the need for such advanced technology.
For example, the high-profile kidnappings of two Canadian women in Kumasi in 2019 and the disappearance of three Takoradi girls in 2018 were managed with the use of technology and interagency and some external support, which highlighted the growing challenges faced by these law enforcement agencies.
Moreover, Ghana’s role as a transit point for drug trafficking, particularly cocaine and heroin, has been well documented. In 2022 alone, the Narcotics Control Commission seized a staggering amount of 59,900 kilograms (kg) of illicit drugs at our ports, emphasising the need for enhanced surveillance tools to combat organised crime.
Mr Speaker, I mention these examples because of the pivotal role that the internet and mobile devices have played and continue to play in serious transnational crimes, and the need to appreciate the direct link between cybercrime and organised crime, drug trafficking, armed robbery, transhuman, but to name a few.
The reality is that cybercrime and cybercriminals exploit mobile devices for a range of illegal activities, including phishing, fraud, identity theft, among others necessitating proactive measures to protect our citizens, which brings me to the technology required to monitor and investigate and ultimately, arrest these criminals.
Given the novelty of this trend of criminality, the establishment of specialised cybercrime courts to be presided over by judges, proficient in digital law and cybercrime would be of immense benefit. The mandate of such courts could be to expedite trials and ensure thorough adjudication of complex cyber cases. This would have the combined effect of empowering the Ghana Police Service to fully invest time, money, and human resources towards the investigation of cybercrime, as well as serve as a deterrent for criminal elements, ultimately protecting our citizens and providing justice for those seeking redress.
Mr Speaker, alongside strengthening legal frameworks, we must invest in enhancing the technological capabilities of our law enforcement agencies through, for example, the acquisition of an IMSI-Catcher tactical van for our police service. This essential piece of equipment, which is effectively for use in combating cybercrime and armed robbery as well, is called the International Mobile Subscriber Identity-Catcher and is a sophisticated device designed to intercept mobile phone signals, enabling law enforcement to track and monitor communications.
When integrated into a tactical vehicle, it becomes a mobile unit deployable wherever needed, greatly amplifying our surveillance and investigative capabilities. It provides real-time tracking and interception capabilities crucial for apprehending criminals swiftly and enhancing public safety by reducing response time to incidents. Furthermore, it facilitates the gathering of admissible evidence, thereby strengthening our legal case against offenders and improving law enforcement.
However, I do hasten to add that the application of such intrusive technology raises the very legitimate concerns about privacy and the need for strict regulations and oversight of agencies to prevent misuse, ensuring compliance with existing laws, and safeguarding civil liberties. These are important checks and balances to prevent the abuse of power, and provide transparency and accountability in the gathering and use of intelligence.
Law enforcement experts and cybersecurity professionals generally endorse acquisition of such assets, reflecting widespread support for enhancing police capabilities among the public. This technology, I reiterate, is essential for bolstering our police services’ ability to combat evolving threats of cybercrime and armed robbery, thereby securing the safety and security of our citizens with the proper legal framework and oversight in place. This integrated approach will enable real-time intelligence sharing and proactive responses to criminal activities, aligning our strategies with global best practices.
I would, therefore, like to end my Statement by summarising a few recommendations. One, that the greater interagency collaboration and coordination, particularly the Ghana Police Service’s Intelligence Unit, the Bureau of National Communications and the Cyber Security Authority. Two, that special courts be established to deal with cybercrimes. Three, procurement of equipment and technology to enhance crime-fighting capabilities of the Ghana Police Services and other intelligence agencies. Four, to establish the requisite legal framework and effective legislative oversight to protect the rights and privacy of citizens from abuse of potentially intrusive technology in the hands of state agencies.
Five, legislation that would compel entities like Facebook to make it more difficult for their platforms to be used as a medium for criminal activity. Finally, that greater public education is provided, so that people do not engage in financial interactions via social media for any reason whatsoever.
Mr Speaker, this is a Statement that was actually written and initially submitted last year, so I am sure that the current Ministers who have specific duties in the relevant sectors will be able to speak to this.
I thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for your attention on this matter.
Hon Samuel Nartey George
Ningo-Prampram
Thank you, Mr Speaker. Let me commend Makers of both Statements, Dr Zanetor AgyemanRawlings and Mr Kennedy Nyarko Osei.
Mr Speaker, even though both Statements have to do with technology they look at two completely different sides. Dr Agyeman-Rawlings’ Statement speaks about cyber security and misinformation while Mr Kennedy Nyarko Osei is looking at improving our tax collection using technology. Let me just start by making a quick correction on Dr Agyeman-Rawlings’ Statement. She makes reference to the Bureau for National Communications (BNC). This House amended the Security and Intelligence Agencies Act so we no longer have the Bureau for National Communications, we have the National Signals Bureau which took over from the BNC.
Mr Speaker, let me state that the point she makes, I want to believe that the 276 Members in this House have suffered an issue of impersonation online either with a fake Facebook, Twitter or Tiktok account. In fact, just this morning, I had to deal with a case of someone impersonating me and offering immigration jobs.
Mr Speaker, let us use this opportunity to state emphatically to the people of Ghana that no Member of Parliament or Minister of State would reach out to you on social media to offer you a job. Any such approach is a scam so please public sensitisation is critical and once we have the media here, I think that it is important we make this point known.
Mr Speaker, however, at the Ministry, one of the key things we are going to be looking to do in the next few weeks is to strengthen our multi-lateral and bilateral arrangements using our focal persons. Most of these platforms are external; the Meta platform is external. We have already started conversations with the focal persons for Africa, specifically West Africa, for us to be able to do some kind of consultation.
Mr Speaker, sometime two years ago, I personally reached out to the contact person and Facebook over a 24- hour period took down 25 fake accounts in my name. In another 48 hours, I identified another set of 40 accounts. So, Facebook takes it down, you complain and new ones are put up. 3.51 p.m. What even worries most Members is when you complain to Facebook, even when you have a verified account, it writes back to you that they cannot take down that posts. Those are things that we need to look at as a country.
Mr Speaker, I think that those goes beyond Ghana, and Ghana need to lead the charge for Africa to have a proper data protection regime because it is one thing Ghana as a country speaking to Meta as a multinational that is worth trillions of dollars, and it is a different thing when Africa is speaking as a collective voice because Europe, even as a Continent, does not deal with these technological platforms as individual countries. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the Europe-wide regulation that has the weight of all European countries backing it, so we need to have, at least an ECOWAS or an AU framework, that would then compel Meta because even if you were to issue summons for Meta to appear before this Parliament’s Committee on Communications, I doubt that you would be able to summon anybody to appear this Committee. However, the US Congress is able to do that, and the EU Parliament is able to do that because of their collective weight. You do not have Meta appearing before individual European Union (EU) countries, but if we do this, collectively, I believe we would be able to push it.
Mr Speaker, another thing we need to look at critically going forward over the next four years is training for our Judiciary because the Statement Dr Agyeman-Rawlings makes points out the fact that, even when there has been arrest made, it is difficult to secure convictions because the judges are not well skilled in how the interpretation of the material, that is being put before them for prosecution, should be used. When we talk about this, even our law enforcement officers need training because when one reads the Cyber Security Act, 2020 (Act 1038), he or she would realise that we talked about preservation order and how to preserve digital evidence that has been taken in the course of investigation. Those are things we need to look at doing.
Mr Speaker, one of the key things that we need to do, which I stated emphatically during my vetting, was a proper Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card re-registration, and we do not need to just a SIM card reregistration. We need to do a central equipment identity register because, today, if one completes a SIM card reregistration and he or she even blocks the SIM card, they can simply move to another phone and use that phone. But if one has a central equipment identity register and it is locked with the SIM card, when we block the SIM card— And most Members know that when the fraud is done, they are asked to pay money to a certain series of numbers. When you block the SIM card and the device as well, it makes it difficult for that person. It means, for that person to perpetuate fraud again, he or she needs buy a new phone and do a new SIM card registration. Once we block the SIM card, we also have the Ghana card that was linked to that registration, and that Ghana card is barred on all the networks from doing any new registration of SIM card.
Mr Speaker, it is a tall order, but we are focused on doing this over the next one year, and I crave the indulgence of Members of this House and this House as a whole to back the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations when we begin this process to clean up this space.
Mr Speaker, Dr Agyeman-Rawlings makes a recommendation on getting an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) vehicle and handing it over to the Ghana Police Service. I am happy that, in her own Statement, she makes reference to the fact that many people are worried about what such technology in the hands of law enforcement can become. I would urge that, even if we decide to go down that route, we should rather hasten slowly and put that equipment in the hand of the Cyber Security Authority. The Cyber Security Authority is still tailored at the civilian institution. When you put this in the hands of fully law enforcement institutions, our safety is, at times, questionable.
Mr Speaker, the Ministry would be coming again to deal with the issues of misinformation and disinformation with legislation to this House, and I would urge Members of Parliament (MPs), to support it because even, in this Chamber, yesterday, there was misinformation. In fact, in the past one week, this House has carried Business on two occasions on the back of misinformation. The Appointments Committee of Parliament had to deal with an issue of misinformation and disinformation when it invited Mr Oliver Barker Vormawor, because there was no authentication of what the Committee put before him as his own post; meanwhile, it was doctored.
Yesterday, the Hon Member for Damongo, Mr Samuel Abdulai Jinapor, made reference to a photo that had been altered and digitally created on the floor of this House. It is important that we take misinformation and disinformation seriously and deal with it once and for all, and crack the whip and make sure that persons who are actively engaged in this, face the full rigours of the law.
Mr Speaker, with your support, and as a Minister, we would bring legislation to deal with it.
Mr Speaker, I end here by saying that the new Government— Unfortunately, the Minister for Finance is not here; but the new Government has inherited a liability from the previous Administration, which is the Rayzone Project, under the Cyber Security Authority. The outgone Minister for Finance is in the room here. The Government owes about US$38 million that should have been paid for us to complete the Cyber Security Authority Building and deploy the Rayzone Technology, and that would have helped us a long way. They failed to do it, but I am hopeful that under the Mahama Administration, we would complete that building, and that would lead our fight to protect the people of our country.
Mr Speaker, on tax revenue, I think that it is a given fact that technology would continue to drive our tax revenue increases if we invest in it.
I thank you, Mr Speaker.
Hon Davis Ansah Opoku
Mpraeso
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to the two Statements ably made my good Sister, Dr Zenator Agyeman-Rawlings, and soon to be Dr Kennedy Nyarko Osei.
Mr Speaker, just like the Ministerdesignate for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, pointed out, at the heart of the two Statements are issues of digitalisation, but you see that they completely vary in terms of reach.
Mr Speaker, I have had severally instances where people have created fake Facebook accounts in my name; it got to a point where I had to issue disclaimers on my social media platform saying that if anyone sees any social media account in my name without the verification tag, then it means that I am not the one. And I would want to join the chorus, as the Minister-designate for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, said, if you are a Ghanaian and anybody approaches you on Facebook or X (formerly, Twitter) or TikTok that he or she is an MP or a Government appointee, and that he is able to offer you jobs on social media for a fee, it is fake. It is absolutely fake; and it is important that Ghanaian people appreciate this.
Mr Speaker, I would also urge Colleague MPs that it is about time we also created social media accounts. If you do not create the account, somebody would create the account in your name and dupe ordinary and innocent Ghanaians. It is happening; and the kind of work we do, sometimes, I wonder why MPs would shy away from creating social media accounts to propagate the good works they do in the constituencies. That is what is happening. If you leave that space to the public, they would seize the opportunity and milk it to their advantage. So, let us create the social media account.
Mr Speaker, I would urge the young Minister-designate for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, that it is about time he liaised with these social companies: Meta, X (Twitter), TikTok, among others, to, at least, get accounts of MPs verified. It should be given; once you are an MP, and you approach social media; Facebook, you should be given that opportunity to get your accounts verified. I have a lot of confidence in Mr Samuel Nartey George and the things that he says, and I am praying that they are not just mere words. He speaks with a lot of confidence, and he speaks with a lot of knowledge when it comes to issues affecting cybercrime.
Mr Speaker, one area where, probably, we should be looking at is how people are using cyber security or cybercrime or the cyber space to engage in human trafficking. Last two years, I was in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and I met some young Ghanaians. In fact, these are young female Ghanaians who were lured through social media to travel abroad, and the difficulties and challenges they are facing outside is untoward; it is not something that we can easily say on this platform. So I urge the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, to put their heads together and sensitise Ghanaians.
We need to educate the Ghanaian. I know that the Police and Immigration Units are setting up units to educate people; and some people are even stopped at the airport, but we need to do more and invest in that space. More importantly, help our young girls who have been engaged in, or are victims of cybercrime; we need to bring them back home. It is difficult because sometimes when they get to the UAE, their masters, those who sponsor them, seize their passports and they are unable to come to Ghana. I think the UAE government has a policy where when one spends a day in UAE, they are charged a fee; so, it piles up and these young girls are left at their own mercy. Sometimes, when they get the opportunity to come on social media, we see videos of them even eating from cans that dogs are feeding from. It is something that we ought to arrest as a people. So, I am happy with the maker of the Statement.
Mr Speaker, in addressing that of my good Friend, Mr Kennedy Osei Nyarko, we have social media platforms like Facebook. Last year, during the election, I was paying Facebook to promote my page and in doing so, they charged me Valued-Added Tax (VAT), as part of the services. Then one day, when the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), came to the Public Accounts Committee and I questioned them on whether they were able to collect these taxes that the multi-social media companies are collecting for and on behalf of the State, they said no, and that they did not even have the mechanism to collect these monies. So, while we adopt digitalisation in revenue collection, we also have difficulties in getting these monies back to the State.
I urge the new Minister for Finance, and the Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, to put their heads together; we need that money. Once they have taken my money, — Facebook cannot be in America and for want of a better word be “chopping” my money. It is important that those monies are collected and used to construct the roads in my constituency. I know that once we adopt these measures, Ghana will move forward and develop through digitalisation. It is important.
Mr Speaker, digitalisation rings one bell. There is a name associated with digitalisation in this country; Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, and I think it is important that we accord him the needed recognition.
Thank you very much for the opportunity to contribute to the Statements ably made by my Colleagues.
Hon Eric Edem Agbana
Ketu North
Thank you, Mr Speaker. I am guided by Order 93 (5) and I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the Statement by the Hon Member of Parliament for Korle Klottey Constituency.
Mr Speaker, there is no doubt that social media is a powerful tool for communication; but it has become a breeding ground for troublemakers and fraudulent activities, and all of us are victims. A simple search on Facebook a few minutes ago revealed that I have about 28 different accounts created in my name, despite taking steps to verify my account by paying monthly. Others have created fake accounts in my name and are using these accounts to demand money from people and defraud them daily.
Mr Speaker, what is surprising is that all these fraudulent activities are successful when money is sent to the fraudster through a mobile money account. We know for a fact that a couple of years ago, the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation, and the Government of Ghana, embarked on an agenda to ensure that every Ghanaian register their SIM cards. We were asked to register them with our Ghana cards; the explanation they gave us was that as soon as you register your SIM cards with the Ghana card, every information about you is available to the State.
Mr Speaker, why is it that fraudsters register SIM cards and use them to perpetrate fraud, and it is very difficult to arrest the individuals behind these accounts, if indeed, they also registered for the SIM cards using their Ghana cards? Secondly, in all of these activities of fraudsters using social media to defraud people, they play on the vulnerability of the people, especially in the area of jobs. I want to plead with the media and all stakeholders as the Hon Minister designate for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations said, it is important for all of us to understand that no Minister of State, Member of Parliament or government official, would use social media platforms to demand money from citizens in order to give them a job. But that means that we must embark on an aggressive digital literacy and public awareness.
Mr Speaker, the media should partner with us to do this because a couple of months ago, a family walked into my house to demand a job. According to them, they paid using an account that had a conversation with them, promising them a job.
All of us are at risk; and this affects the credibility of politicians or political leaders. The media and all stakeholders must see this issue as a national security threat, and as a matter of urgency, all of us must do our very best to ensure that we address this issue of cybercrime.
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity.
Hon Yaw Osei Adutwum
Bosomtwe
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for such a wonderful opportunity.
Mr Speaker, I want to commend the maker of the Statement on cyber security, Dr Zenator Agyeman-Rawlings, for speaking to the cyber security challenge we face as a nation.
With increased digitalisation, it is not surprising that we would have challenges in the space of cyber security, but I want us to also begin to look at the opportunities presented to us. Opportunities presented to us include education in this area at the high school level, and at the university level.
Mr Speaker, in the United States of America (USA), it is estimated that 500,000 cyber security jobs have gone on field and it may go on field for years to come. Around the world, there are 3 million cyber security jobs that are waiting for people to be trained to fill them. The opportunity we have as a nation is to begin to look at our education system. Last year, at the high school level, through the High School Curriculum Reform, cyber security content was introduced as a course work at the universities. We have to find a way to incentivise our universities to introduce courses in cyber security.
We also have to begin to look at industry certification in the cyber security field. It may not just be enough to have an Information Technology (IT) course at the university to meet this requirement. How are we preparing our youth to meet the world’s standard requirements in areas like Critical Security Controls (CSC) Cyber Security Certification, CompTIA Security, Network Security and among others? There are many industry certification programmes at the world stage that when our youth get certified with, can get jobs and work in that field even remotely. So, as we look at the challenge, we also have to look at the opportunity the cyber security threat contains and gives us, and begin to take advantage.
This is where the Ministry of Communications, Digital Technology and Innovations, Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance can collaborate to create grant programmes that incentivises universities to create cyber security courses and also incentivises high schools with laboratories to also train students in cyber security. So, as we take advantage of the challenge, Ghana would put its best foot forward providing the cyber security experts of the world. I think that is an area that we need to take notice of.
We also have to congratulate institutions that are doing this. I want to take this opportunity to congratulate Wisconsin International University College and its Chancellor, Dr Paul K. Fynn, for introducing a cybersecurity course at their universities.
Other public universities can take a cue and follow suit. As we talk about the challenges posed by cyber security, we are also going to be able not only to provide a legal framework for combating the menace, but also, provide the people with the expertise to deal with challenges posed by cyber security. So, as we confront the challenges, let us look at how we would take advantage of cyber security threat as an opportunity, and train the masses of people that would just not meet the needs of Ghana, but the needs of the world.
Mr Speaker thank you for this opportunity.
Hon Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah
Takoradi
Mr Speaker thank you very much for the opportunity to add my voice to these two Statements made by Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, and Mr Kennedy Nyarko Osei, my partner from the Western Region. I am duly informed that this is his maiden Statement on taxes
Mr Speaker, I believe that the issues are clear. First and foremost, in this modern world, we can never do anything without digitalisation, the internet and the internet of things. It is therefore very appropriate that while issues of cyber security come up, as a country, we also rise up to the occasion. It is a fact that today, digitalisation has made our lives easier to live, and gives us the opportunity to grow our country. Today, when one takes the giants of the world, more than five IT companies control them; that is Apple, Microsoft, among others. Therefore, I believe that now that we are talking about cyber security, we should also look at the education we give to our children and the population in general.
Mr Speaker, these days, if one is a Member of Parliament (MP), one should understand that they are not free. Every day, one would see in their inbox messages as a minister or an MP, that one’s Personal Assistant (PA), took money from people, with the assurance that they would be employed in the Military, the Police or Immigration Service. Clearly, it shows that there is information gap, and expectations that come from our own people. I have consistently said that our education would be incomplete if we do not start teaching critical thinking courses in our schools. Because I ask myself how an ordinary person would think that his MP would take GH₵200 from him or her before he gets placement into the Immigration Services or any employment agency in our country.
I believe that is number one. Secondly, we should also understand that we have made so many laws to curb the incidents in the internet or the digitalisation space. We even have the Data Protection Agency, the Police Service Act 1970 (Act 350), the Data Protection Act, 2012, the Electronic Transaction Act, 2008 (Act 772), among others. We have a lot of laws and for all these laws, there are sanctions attached. So, the question one asks is how come people continue to perpetrate a lot of these crimes and we are not able to take care of it?
Mr Speaker, I do believe that it is time that these agencies become robust in dealing with people who are cited for such fraud and cyber security breaches. This is so that the country can see some calm, and also encourage investors into our country. As we speak today, a lot of payment companies like PayPal still do not allow Ghanaians to fully use their services to purchase online across the globe. There are certain services which are still not even here in Ghana, like Amazon; they just recently moved to South Africa. This clearly shows that there is something amiss when it comes to cyber security and fraud being perpetrated on the internet.
t is for this reason that I believe that the new Minister who has been in the system for some time, would look at this area not just as an intelligence issue, but also, as a way of life of Ghanaians. So that Ghanaians would have that full confidence to move a lot of their activities online to also get the benefit thereof.
Mr Speaker, going forward, on the tax administration, I have had the responsibility some time ago as the finance committee chairman of the Metropolitan Assembly of Sekondi Takoradi—we never increased daily rates; we just digitalised, and our revenues moved within six years by a 1000 per cent. So, I was clear in my mind when Mr Kennedy Osei made it clear that we have been able to increase our revenues through digitalisation.
I think that is the way to go. Unfortunately, it is only in Ghana that when the government moves services online, people get annoyed.
In fact, I remember when we came to power, immediately they moved the Ghana Scholarships Secretariat online, people complained, asking how they could benefit, because it is online, and that they were not getting anything. Immediately they moved the Youth Employment Agency (YEA) online, people felt reluctant to go and fill out the forms.
So, I believe that we need to educate our people and let them see the real benefits of these interventions that government is putting in place. Because for us to move our revenues from GH₵45 billion to over GH₵150 billion through digitalisation, I believe it is clearly the way to go. In fact, recently in my Region, we introduced what we call the E-Tankas. We were trying to create a sanitation model with digitalisation, and all of a sudden, the assembly started increasing revenues. Because of the ability to actually capture sanitation nuisance online, they are able to increase their revenue.
I believe that from what Mr Kennedy Osei said, it is appropriate that we also look at the issue of financial literacy in our schools. A lot of Ghanaians do not seem to be abreast with the issues of finance. Therefore, we find it difficult to understand one another even in paying taxes, to start with.
In fact, in this House, I mentioned that when it even comes to the issue of asset declaration, every Ghanaian should declare his assets, so that people do not move assets from one place to another. But when one says it, people would start asking why they to address that issue. There should be a basis, so that we can all understand that paying tax to the State is good. Therefore, the suspicion among one another would also I said declare it, and make it public. If you declare it, it is good; so, people cannot move assets across.
So, that when the tax officers ask us to file online and use our National Identity Cards to do a few things, there can always be that connection and interaction, for us to trace to the last mile, so the government can get the benefit of our taxes.
Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity.
Hon George Kweku Ricketts-Hagan
Cape Coast South
Thank you, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to contribute to this important Statement made by my able friend, Dr Zanetor Agyeman-Rawlings, and a similar Statement made by Mr Kennedy Nyarko Osei.
Mr Speaker, cybercrime cases have, indeed, become alarming. It is not just peculiar to Ghana, but actually, it is global. It looks as if technology is ahead of the regulation. We have a lot of regulators who are actually technocrats, but not practitioners in the technology or digital world. Therefore, they have challenges in keeping up with the people who are perpetuating these types of crimes.
Mr Speaker, some of the recommendation that Dr Agyeman Rawlings made here are important. We need to have the equipment. Such matters are reported to the Police and other agencies that deal with cybercrimes, but they are not equipped, and do not have a good understanding of the technology to be able to deal with the problems that we send to them.
These platforms: TikTok, X, Facebook, among others, have actually become numerous; and they are not being as responsible as they should, and are being taken on by the mighty countries like the United States of America, Europe and others. In Africa, we do not actually have the strength to take these platforms on; therefore, the services that are provided to us are not as good as others get elsewhere. This is because in other countries, there are penalties that these institutions pay to governments. If that is not there, then obviously, people would get away with doing all the things that they do. It is difficult; and I am sure it has affected a lot of people here. If one gets these fake accounts, they would be able to shut those accounts down, even with verification. Because we do not have the regulations and what we need to do these things—
With what Mr Osei said, when it comes to revenues for technology, we are just scratching the surface. One would hear various Ministers for Finance talk about widening the tax net and all that. Yes, the tax net can be widened for the informal sector, but technology and digitalisation are actually in the formal sector; they are not informal. Therefore, we are not doing enough there. Are the people at the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) equipped with the technology to chase some of these institutions to get us the taxes that they should pay? The answer is no. When one goes to the Ministry of Finance, is the Ministry hiring practitioners who understand this modern-day technology to be able to pursue the taxes that some of these institutions are due to pay us?
We have the Minister-designate for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations here; I know that he is well-equipped; and I hope that he would equip the Ministry and its agencies to have the sophisticated equipment that we have today. The criminals are far ahead of us with the technologies that they have, and we need to fashion out policies and regulations to get these scammers.
The Minister for Finance is not here, but I know he will hear this. The former Minister for Finance had the opportunity to make a good contribution, and I hope we would follow up on going for taxes that we can get from the formal sector, the technology and digitalisation space, and not just talk about widening the net to the informal sector, which, for some reason, we are not able to do. The hanging fruits are still within the formal sector where these technology players actually play.
I thank the Hon Members who made the Statements for a good job done. Mr Speaker, with these few words, I thank you.
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Mr Speaker, I was just saying that, based on what Mr Opoku said, I would plead with both Whips to compile a list of the official accounts on all social media platforms: Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok, and furnish the Ministry with that information. That would allow us engage the platform owners, build and do a verification. This is because our colleagues in the US Congress do not use the blue tick. They actually have a grey tick for public officials and government, and that is even different from the blue tick. If you furnish us with those details, we would be engaging with the platforms to get that level of verification, and do a public sensitisation to Ghanaians that, unless they see a grey tick, they should not see that account as an official government handle.
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