The Coalition of Affected Savings and Loans Customers (CASLOC), have called on the government to provide clarification on the usage of a GH₵1.2bn fund as to whether it is an approved amount given for the total financial clean up exercise.

CASLOC is made up of the customers or depositors of the 23 Savings and Loans and Finance services whose licenses were revoked by the Bank of Ghana (BoG) on the August 16, 2019 with an objective of  engaging governments through all available legal means and the best ways possible in retrieving locked up funds as early as possible.

According to the Secretary, Mr. Ezekiel Annor Akagbo at a press conference on Wednesday, December 11, 2019 in Kumasi, CASLOC is very much muddled about a number of figures uttered by governments and its key institutions in the entire sector clean up exercise involving the nine Universal Banks, the 23 Savings and Loans and Finance Companies, the 347 Microfinance Companies, the 39 Micro-credit companies and the recently collapsed 53 companies under the securities industry.

He revealed that the 2019 Budget statement read by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori Atta assured depositors that an amount of GH₵18bn has been earmarked for the financial sector clean up exercise.

“Out of this amount, GH₵12bn was to be used for cleaning up the nine universal banks and  GH₵6bn for the cleaning up the Saving and Loans and finance house companies, the microfinance and micro-credit companies which includes 23 savings and loans and finance house companies, 347 microfinance companies and 39 micro credit companies,” he said.

He referenced that the Finance Minister in the 2019 mid-year budget review exercise, Mr. Ken Ofori Atta updated that the GH₵12bn cedis allocated fund for the Universal Banks clean up exercise has shot up to GH₵14bn and estimated that the GH₵6bn also allocated for the savings and loans and finance house companies and the microfinance and micro credit would also shoot up to GH₵7bn instead, amounting to GH₵21bn in total instead of the originally estimated GH₵8bn cedis.

Mr. Akagbo explained that out of the GH₵7bn, about GH₵5.8bn was allocated to the Savings and Loans and finance House companies whereas the remaining would be allocated to the microfinance and micro credit companies.

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“It was discovered that the GH₵14bn cedis has been given to the Consolidated Bank of Ghana for the clean-up exercise of the Universal Banks, a little over GH₵9bn has also been given to the receiver, Mr. Nana Nipa to clean up the 347 micro finance and 39 micro credits. But when it comes to the 23 savings and loans and finance house clean up exercise, we did not hear of any amount of money given to the same receiver, Mr. Nana Nipa for that exercise,” he disclosed.

He divulged that CASLOC on December 9, 2019 heard and saw that an amount of GH₵1.2bn has been allocated out of the recently approved money of GH₵15.6bn by the presidency towards the financial sector clean up exercise. He further explained that members of the Coalition are confused as to whether the amount is an extra added to the already earmarked ones or the total amount of money given for the total financial clean up exercise.

He called on the government to come to their aid and make clarification to their satisfaction, dismissing a statement made by the governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr. Ernest Addison in a press conference held on November 25, 2019 that 95 percent of all depositors who have been affected by the entire financial sector clean up exercise have been paid their monies with a remainder of five percent yet to be paid.

He challenged that the statement from the governor was not true and totally “uncalled for”.

“We believe strongly that here the government might have ben referring to the affected depositors in the Universal Bank sector alone because on the 7 November 2019, the receiver Mr. Nana Nipa was heard in an interview saying that he was then working acidulously to making sure that from then to December 2019, he would have paid 95 percent of depositors in the microfinance sector and 90 percent in the savings and loans sector with even a cut amount of GH₵20,000 of which majority of us are displeased of,” he said.

He narrated the dangers and frustrations investors have gone through and pleaded to the government through the Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Ghana and the receiver to see to the immediate resolution of the court cases of First Allied Savings and Loans company limited, GN savings and Loans and Unicredit Savings and Loans in order to ensure that the data of customers can be assessed fully to pave way for a smooth validation process and a subsequent payment exercise as early as possible because affected depositors are dying slowly every now and then.