The Coalition of Aggrieved Customers of Collapse Banks in the Upper East Region have given the government two weeks ultimatum to pay them their locked up investment or face their wrath.
Addressing the press in Bolgatanga, Madam Justina Archana, lead spokesperson for the over 2500 members of the group in the region expressed their frustration at government’s failure to honour its promise of paying them their investments locked up at the various banks and financial institutions.
Madam Justina Archana said she and her colleague members are going through serious financial challenges because of their inability to access their locked up funds.
“Our children can’t go to tertiary schools, our parents can’t pay for their medical bills, our businesses are collapsing, our wifes and husbands are living us”- they cried.
The group said the collapse of the banks and the lock of the funds have cost the existence of many banks and financial institutions, many have died as a result of the shock and pain of losing their life time investment and savings coupled with the inability of many of them to pay the fees of their wards and medical bills.
The group described government’s cleanup of the financial sector as a wicked act to punish innocent citizens. “ considering that most of these banks that were taken off were indigenous banks, owned and operated by Ghanaians ,we believe it was cruel on the part of this and any government to do this to its own people and turn around to advocate “local content” and private sector participation as the engine of economic growth “. This also flies against government’s own “Ghana Beyond Aid Agenda”
Madam Abeene Cecilia a widow, recounted how she invested her children’s benefits, hoping to recoup profit that will help her pay their fees and how that hope have been dashed due to the financial sector clean up that lead to the collapsed of several local banks and micro financial institutions.
She like many like her, are pleading on the government to pay back their investment as soon as possible.
Meanwhile the group has served government a two weeks ultimatum to have their locked up funds paid back to them immediately because they cannot wait for five years to have their monies.
“We want to use this medium to serve a two weeks ultimatum to government to initiate alternative plans to pay all depositors our monies as soon as possible! Certainly, we cannot wait for 5 years to be short changed when the value of our deposits will lose value because no interest is accruing from it.”
“We want government to understand that we didn’t force them to collapse any bank or financial institution, they took the decision on their own perhaps born out of cruelty, witchcraft and greed; or better still grand deception”
The group said if after the two weeks government fails to come out with a revised payment plan to refund their money, they will besiege the Jubilee House and occupy it till they are paid .
“After two weeks if we don’t receive any favourable revised plan from government to refund and pay us all our monies , we shall besiege the Jubilee House and “Occupy” it till they pay us our money. We shall not leave the Jubilee House untill everyone of us is paid”
They group also called on all affected customers of the collapse banks to defy the COVID-19 consequences and join the ques ,to get registered to be able to vote against the government who has made their lives miserable.
“We are by this press conference here in Bolgatanga, encouraging all our over 2500 members in the Upper East and by extension all depositors in the country who have their monies locked up in this collapsed banks, microfinance and savings and loans companies to defy the consequence of the COVID-19 and join the ques ,no mather the restrictions you may have to encounter, get registered to be able to vote against the government who have decided to make our lives miserable by withholding our hard earned money for God knows how long without any justified cause”
By: Simon Agana/mywordfmonline.com