Bolgatanga Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) Roland Ayoo says the Assembly will overhaul its revenue mobilization system by removing the majority of its current collectors, whom he described as too old, unskilled, or ill-equipped to meet modern administrative demands.
Speaking on A1 Radio, Ayoo said about three-quarters of the Assembly’s revenue collectors will be relieved of their duties “effective immediately.” Many, he noted, have remained in the same roles for more than eight years without improving performance.
“Some are old. For the past eight years, they have been there,” he said. “Some cannot write. I’m telling you. They are working with us but cannot issue receipts. How do we continue like that?”
Ayoo said the situation has led to weak accountability systems, including instances where collectors report to duty only in the evenings or develop overly familiar relationships with market users—relationships he believes compromise revenue integrity.
“When you are the revenue collector at the animal market for five years, you become so used to the people. Everything becomes normal,” he said. “So, we will rotate them. When you are in a place too long, you relax. We need new, energetic people with skills.”
The MCE said the Assembly has intensified monitoring, with revenue accountants now submitting daily reports on each collector’s output to help detect inconsistencies, underperformance and suspicious patterns.
“Generally, since I came, the revenue generation is good, but not the best,” he said. “We need to put in mechanisms and strategies. The first strategy is reviewing the type of revenue collectors we use. If you cannot read and write, how do you collect property rates? This is unacceptable.”
Ayoo suggested that some existing collectors were recruited through personal connections rather than merit—an issue he believes has contributed to inefficiency and poor accountability.
To strengthen the system, he said the Assembly will recruit new, educated individuals, including national service personnel, to inject professionalism, transparency, and energy into the revenue mobilization process.
Source: A1 Radio | 101.1 Mhz | Moses Apiah | Bolgatanga
