Menzgold customers demand GHC 11.4m or take legal action against the state

Amanda Clinton, a lawyer and representative of customers of defunct financial institution, Menzgold Ghana Limited, has threatened legal action against the state over statements of negligence.

Contained in a letter addressed to the Attorney-General, Ms. Clinton noted the state has one month to redeem the payment, commencing from October 22 or face a law suit.

Mincing no words, she expressed her intent by stating categorically her demand of some GHC 11,402,000 plus interest and general damages from the state for a cross-section of her current clients.

 “It is unfortunate that the reason in which SEC ultimately shut down the operations of Menzgold Ghana Limited on the 7th day of September 2018 existed at the very first instance when the company began its operations and thus SEC was reckless in not shutting down Menzgold Ghana Limited much earlier when they began operating.”

According to her, the laxity and latent disposition of government necessitated throngs of investors being able to invest in the companies over time much larger amounts in the company.

The Criminal Investigation Department of the Police service was not left out of the loop as she noted that, the CID between 2011 and 2012 received evidence that Menzgold CEO, Nana Appiah Mensah, “had set up SF Gold Ghana Limited to defraud upwards of 53 people within the Weija enclave through a company known as SF Gold Ghana Limited”.

“Although C.I.D charged Nana Appiah Mensah, a director of both Menzgold Ghana Limited and Brew Marketing Consult Limited, for defrauding by false pretenses and prosecuting him for conspiracy to defraud the complainants before 2012; CID did not follow the case to its natural end when Nana Appiah Mensah did not fulfil his bail terms and absconded.

“Had Mr. Mensah been properly pursued by CID in 2011-2012, he may well have been put in jail instead of conceptualizing and actualizing the entities known as Menzgold and Brew to the absolute financial detriment of countless Ghanaians which is against public interest.”

Albeit there some caveats issued from regulatory bodies such as the Security and Exchange Commission and Bank of Ghana to the public on the operations of Menzgold, Ms. Clinton indicated the cautionary statements were a bit belated.

“Given the failure of the State to take appropriate steps and apply sanctions, this was negligent on the part of the State which caused pecuniary losses my clients have suffered”.

For almost two years, clients of the defunct financial institution have been persistent in their bid to retrieve funds invested in the firm.

With this, Ms. Clinton intimated that, the lack of progress has had “a severe impact on them economically which has, in turn, affected them psychologically, mentally”.

That notwithstanding, she assured clients of her willingness to enter negotiations with the Attorney General.

Menzgold customers have been in dire straits since September 2018 when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) suspended the mineral trading firm’s operations.

But Ms. Clinton argued that the state was aware of the questionable nature of Menzgold’s operation as far back as 2011.