Story: Atta Kwaku Boadi
The senior management of Groupe Nduom(GN) has presented a two- page petition to two of the aspiring presidential candidates of the 2024 elections to support the call for the restoration of the licence of GN Savings.
In separate meetings yesterday, the GN team led by its Chairman, Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom first met with Nana Kwame Bediako, popularly known as Cheddar of the New Force Movement, and later went to John Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen of Movement for Change.
Readers will recall that on Monday, June 8, 2024, Today Newspaper published that GN management had sent letters to some flagbearers including John Dramani Mahama and Dr Mahamudu Bawumia informing them about a petition they want to present to them this week to support the return of GN Savings/ Bank.
Dr Nduom underscored the need for governments to support the growth of indigenous Ghanaian businesses, noting that it was the only way to make the country’s economy strong.
The GN wants flagbearers to consider the reinstatement of the licence of GN Savings/Bank should they win the December 7 presidential election, and subsequently become the president of Ghana; if the current administration fails to restore the licence before it leaves office.
At the office of the Movement for Change, Mr Alan Kyerematen who worked with Dr Nduom in the Kufuor administration welcoming the GN team acknowledged Dr Nduom’s contributions to the development of Ghana in the area of job creation.
The Groupe Nduom chairman before presenting the petition pointed out that, his intention of establishing GN Bank was for financial inclusion and job creation hence the reason for the many branches the bank opened across the country.
He told Mr Kyerematen that, GN Bank was reclassified as GN Savings and given a six month period to meet specific requirements which he said were all satisfied. The requirements the Bank of Ghana (BoG) gave them included changing of the name and downsizing. He disclosed that the BoG even went further to assign somebody, Yaw Sarpong as advisor to GN Savings.
According to Dr Nduom, it was therefore a surprise to him when the BoG revoked the GN Savings licence after meeting all the requirements it gave to them.
“ We are here today to present a petition to you so that if you become president, then you know there is GN Savings licence issue you have to resolve”, Dr Nduom said.
He added: “As president you inherit good and bad things so I know if this administration doesn’t give the licence to us you will do it”
After receiving the petition, Mr Alan Kyerematen assured the GN team of his support and promised to bring GN Savings back if elected as Ghana’s president in the December 7 polls.
Mincing no words, the leader of Movement for Change noted that , the decision to revoke the licences of some Ghanaian owned banks including GN Savings was a policy failure.
He did not understand why the BoG after reclassifying GN Bank went ahead and revoked its licence when the it was in the process of putting things in place.
Among other things he said the BoG’s decision to revoke the licence of GN Savings and others amounted to policy failure was the money the government borrowed to collapse the banks and the government’s inconsiderate posture of not thinking about many Ghanaians who lost their jobs in this so-called banking sector clean-up.
According to him, even if those banks were facing some challenges, what they needed was not the revocation of their licences but technical and financial support from the government to help them stay in business.
To this end, he promised to investigate the reason for the revocation of the licences of the Ghanaian banks “as it is alleged that some people may have done that just for the benefit they would get from it”.
“If indeed there was no justification for the withdrawal of the licences of some banks as it has been alleged I promise you(Dr Nduom) that if I am elected I will ensure those who did that are held accountable for their deeds”, he stressed.
