Nana Ama Dokua Asiamah-Adjei
GOVERNMENT HAS
described as false the claim by some aggrieved residents of Elmina who
organised a press conference on Wednesday and blamed it for the woes of GN
Savings and Loans Limited.
In a response letter
dated August 25, 2019, signed by Nana Ama Dokua Asiamah-Adjei, deputy Minister
of Information headlined “Re: Press Conference by Elmina Residents”, Government
stated that “the claim made by the organisers of the press conference that the
woes of GN Savings and Loans had been caused because Government had failed to
honour its financial obligations to GN Savings and Loans is completely
misplaced. Indeed, as at 6th August, 2019, Government’s indebtedness
to GN amounted only to GH¢30.33 million. An agreement has, indeed, been reached
between the Ministry of Finance and GN to settle this debt. However, even when
completely settled, it will still not address GN’s capital deficit of GH¢638.66
million.”
Noting also that
the Akufo-Addo administration had nothing to gain from the closure of a company
belonging to a Ghanaian, government said the deliberate attempt to draw in government
and President Akufo-Addo into the insolvency problems of GN Savings and Loans
and others was totally unwarranted, unfortunate and without substance.
It explained that
since assuming office in 2017, the pre-occupation of President Akufo-Addo has
been to incentivise the Ghanaian private sector to be able to compete
effectively in the region, the continent and the world and create jobs for the
Ghanaian people.
“As stated clearly
in the BoG statement, “GN’s insolvency problems are largely attributable to
overdraft and other facilities it extended to its related parties who are other
companies in the Groupe Nduom network of businesses, under circumstances that
violated relevant prudential norms” including transfers of large sums of money
($62,255,516’93, £718,528.59 and €4,200) from depositors’ funds to foreign
accounts of companies of Groupe Nduom, in breach of section 19 of the Foreign Exchange
Act 2006, Act 723, section IV of Bank of Ghana Notice No. BG/GOV/SEC/2007/4,
and subsequent Bank of Ghana Notices issued in August 2014 prohibiting such
practices.”
It added that the
operating licence of GN Savings was revoked because of insolvency and liquidity
challenges.
