Members of the Aggrieved Customers of Gold Coast Fund Management with a membership of over fifty-five thousand unpaid customers of Black shield Capital Limited, hitherto known as Gold Coast Fund Management (GCFM), has threatened legal actions against government over locked up funds.
The group indicated that it has been over four years since their investments got locked up with GCFM which is a government-regulated institution under the Asset Management Sector regulated by Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). It noted that the lock-up of investments was mainly due to the Government’s policy of a Financial Sector Clean-up Exercise in Ghana initiated in 2018.
“We respectfully plead the media to interrogate and request the Finance Minister to explain how he arrived at spending an amount of GHS 25,000,000,000.00 to settle a debt of GHS9,000,000,000.00 and yet, the Aggrieved Customers Of Gold Coast Fund Management have not received full payment of our investments. We wish to assure the general public that, we are ready to go to court to seek redress of this matter.”
Aggrieved customers of Gold Coast Fund Management
It urged the media to entreat government to commit to the budget allocation made in the 2021 budget for payment the aggrieved customers.
“Following the brief background enumerated in the previous paragraphs, we would like to humbly petition the media which is the fourth estate of realm as follows; A parliamentary approved bailout package as we all know is distinct from a liquidation order being sought in the court. Therefore, we plead the media to treat our plight with a sense of public interest and recommend to the government to proceed to commit the GHC 5.5 billion budget allocation made in the 2021 budget for payment of Fund Management Customers to pay us.”
Aggrieved Customers Of Gold Coast
Customers plea for media intervention
Contained in a statement, the group indicated that affected depositors of other Fund Management Companies have been bailed out long ago and it is most unfortunate that the government is discriminating against them. It explained that this discriminatory act on the part of the government is in contravention of the 1992 Constitution that requires the government to treat all its nationals equally without discrimination.
“Government taking over the debt and validating customers claims with an initial payment of GHC 50,000 per each investment makes the government liable to the customers on the grounds of absorption of responsibility. Affected depositors would have taken action to retrieve their deposit since 2018 but for the government taking over the responsibility to pay us.”
Aggrieved Customers Of Gold Coast
The customers stated that it had been the case of Group Nduom that government owes them and the evidence available clearly confirms same. They highlighted that it is however unfortunate that the ordinary citizens are now made to bear the brunt of a government decision for the past four years in such a “dastardly” manner.
“You can imagine how we have been surviving for all these years, especially, the pensioners and sick persons among us.”
Aggrieved Customers Of Gold Coast
Pensioners, the group noted, are among those who have their investment locked up till date and form more than 70% of the membership. It expressed that it is incomprehensible that government would shield its responsibility with a condition of securing an order from the court before it pays these dying pensioners.
The initial forensic audit conducted by the government on the Financial Sector before the introduction of the Financial Clean-up Exercise policy, the group revealed, puts the debt in the Financial Sector to GHS 9,000,000,000.00. Now, it noted that a document available from the Finance Ministry shows that amount of money committed to payment of victims of the clean-up to date sums up to GHS 25,000,000,000.00.
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