10% Excise Duty on SMS Scare Flood Victims

Survivers: 

New excise duty on text messaging has scared people of Nsanje who survived from this years worst flood disaster.

In order to expand the tax base to generate resources for budget, 10% excise duty to be levied on text messaging and all data transfers including internet and similar services.

People of Nsanje district have made a very strong argument through Member of Parliament for Nsanje South West Constituency, Hon Joseph Chidanti Malunga who spoke in the National Assembly about how the new tax has disappointed and scared people of Nsanje.

Hon Chidanti: Survivers are scared 

The parliamentarian, Honorable Chidanti Malunga, made the formal request in the National Assembly that government should stop implementing that punitive tax because text messages saved many lives of people of his constituency during floods.

He said people from Nsanje are worried and of the view that it is not wise decision to raise tax on such life saving services.

That flood disaster day, he said, "The commonest form of communication was text messages."

"We were able to text warning messages to one another and with family and friends so, we were saved”

Hon. Chidanti then said, "Today we are worried" and repeated "we are worried that we have to pay more for these services."

"We therefore urge government to re-look at this proposal to raise the tariff on text messaging in this year’s budget” pleaded the peoples representative

Malawians continue mounting pressure on government to abandon decision of raising tax on SMS, Data and Internet.

Minister of Finance, Economic Planing and Development, Honorable Goodall Gondwe when presenting 2015/2016 budget estimates, where he announced the new tax, said government decision to increase the tax was reached upon having observed that government core to improve access to mobile telecommunication has been fulfilled after it removed custom duties on mobile phones and solar cellular telephone chargers.

The minister said there is now tremendous uptake of the telecommunication services.

However, many people have spoken against the decision.