on consumer protection in comprehensive and holistic terms. Its vision and strategies have both significant cross linkages with both market practices and issues of governance in telecom industry.40 The association has been very responsible when it comes to the utilization of its resources towards ensuring that its members utilize the universal free numbers. For example, the free emergency numbers to the Police is used by its members to relay information since they consider mobile crime as a modern crime and so the need for a national service to help the Police in terms of combating modern crime. The association has also been relaying information to the National Security but presumably through non-free numbers and other means towards combating mobile crime in the country. They played a role to assist the security agencies in detecting some of those people who abused SIM cards for criminal activities. This crime known as SIM box fraud demands greater public support for the security agencies to identify its perpetrators. Many people think that the 6% rate on electronic communication service, known as ‘the Talk tax’ is so high because they think that whatever tax is imposed on the networks eventually leads to the subscriber getting overburden with its overall effect. ASIMODE shares in this opinion. They hold the view that the subscriber pays the tax indirectly on behalf of the networks meaning that the subscriber have to bear the final pressure. Moreover, a similar opinion is expressed about the Value Added Tax (VAT) and the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) levies. The 17.5% percent levy imposed on the importation of mobile handsets is considered not to be favourable to users of the service and the network operators. They believe the Government is assuming that mobile phone dealers are making huge monies which they think is not true. They disagree with the rate of tax and consider it as a disincentive to importers of mobile handsets and dealers of mobile phone credit retail business. They consider it to be affecting their business but because the mobile retailing business is reserved for Ghanaians that it has been their incentive in the business.
The tariffs by service providers have come under critic and sometimes opposition. People criticise the tariffs based on the belief that a subscriber is a stake-owner of the country’s air resources and so a situation where the same owner is a abused then it calls for redress. They 40
Recorded interview with Nii Adjetey Sowah - President of ASIMODE See Appendix 4 - Interview Transcript with ASIMODE
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