Ken Ofori-Atta must not benefit personally from any government loans – Dr Kofi Amoah

• Dr Kofi Amoah says institutions owned by Ken Ofori-Atta should not benefit from any gov’t loans

• But the ministry has since denied this claim

Ghanaian economist and business mogul Dr Kofi Amoah has added his voice to calls by Bolgatanga Central MP, Isaac Adongo that financial institutions owned by the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta should not act as transactional advisors on government financial deals.

In a post on social media, Dr Amoah advanced the argument it is unethical for a company affiliated with the Finance Minister to serves as transactional advisors on government loans.

He made the aversion that whiles such actions may be backed by law, it does not give a positive indication or perception about the government.

“What’s legal may not always be appropriate. Political leadership must set ennobling examples. The Finance Minister, the architect of Ghana’s Big Loans, must not benefit PERSONALLY in any shape or form from the loans; it’s a conflict-of-interest and violation of our sacred trust in him”, he posted on Twitter.

In the last couple of months, Dr Kofi Amoah has been championing an agenda to have the government of Ghana stop its excessive borrowing.

According to Dr Amoah, excessive borrowing which usually goes into consumption only cripples a country’s economy and future.

Adongo’s accusations and reply from Ministry of Finance

Isaac Adongo in a social media post lamented the use of firms owned by Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and Minister of Finance designate Dr Charles Adu Boahen as transactional advisors for government financial deals.

Adongo raised the issue of conflict of interest and also pointed out that the two institutions are fleecing the country with the charges for their services.

He alleged “they are paid 0.35 percent per value, that gives you eight hundred and seventy-five million cedis in fees that Databank and the rest have had to share from the people of Ghana. This year, the government’s total gross financing requirement is about 60 billion Ghana cedis, again you can offset about ten billion of that for other financing arrangement and treasury bills in the gross financing arrangement, and you have another close to fifty billion that would be borrowed by Ken Ofori Atta and his company and Charles Adu-Boahen and his company.”

“In all, we expect payment of two hundred and ten million Ghana cedis in fees and changes to be shared by these book-runners”.

Mr Adongo called on both parties to “as a matter of conscience to withdraw those companies immediately. And for Charles Adu-Boahen to do the honorable thing and withdraw Black Star brokerage before his vetting and approval. I want to assure them that in this particular activity, I would not relent on it.”

But the Ministry of Finance rubbished the allegations, clarifying that Ken Ofori Atta and Dr Charles Adu Boahen do not play any role in the daily running of the two financial institutions.

“Mr Adu Boahen resigned from the Board and from [the] management of Black Star back in Jan 2017 immediately after he was nominated by the President as one of his Deputy Ministers for Finance. He also transferred his shares in the company to a family trust on [the] assumption of public office. Mr Ofori-Atta resigned as Executive Chair of Databank in August 2012 and resigned from all the Databank Boards in February 2014,” the ministry said in a statement copied to GhanaWeb.