Hundreds of aggrieved customers of the defunct Gold Coast Fund Management, who have their investments locked up due to the government’s revocation of the company’s license, are demanding payment.
The aggrieved customers in Kumasi are seeking the restitution of their funds from the defunct company at the earliest time possible.
Failure of the government to refund their money, the group says, will orchestrate the failure of Vice President Bawumia’s quest to win the 2024 elections.
Former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta supervised a banking sector clean-up from mid-2017 to January 2020 in a bid to restore confidence in the banking and specialized deposit-taking sector.
The government said the action was one of the contributory factors for the country’s high debt stock.
The clean-up saw a reduction in the number of banks from 34 to 23, whilst 347 microfinance institutions, 15 savings and loans, and eight finance houses had their licenses revoked.
Gold Coast Fund Management is one of the financial companies that was affected by the exercise.
This has resulted in the funds of customers being locked up for over six years.
The affected customers are decrying that the effects of their locked-up funds have left them in dire psychological, and medical conditions.
Convener of Aggrieved Customers of Gold Coast Fund Management, Charles Nyame, says efforts to rest the issue and get repayment for faulted customers have proven unsuccessful.
“Six years of staring at empty plates, wondering how to pay for the medications my loved ones desperately need. We trusted the system and invested our hard-earned money for a secure future, but here we are, only to be cast aside like a dead news of yesterday.
“Financial Clean-up Policy has locked up our cedis. Whilst we await a parliamentary report from a committee set to address our concerns, we have seen that it’s leading to no direction,” he said.
Leaders of the group are giving the government and financial authorities a three-month ultimatum, or face their collective voting power against the current governing New Patriotic Party.
“This election season, our vote won’t be a choice, it will be a scream. A scream born from the depths of despair, fueled by years of neglect. We would not be silenced by apathy anymore.
“June 30th is our deadline. Give us back our money, every single cedi, with interest that reflects the stolen years and the shattered dreams. It’s the only way to mend the gaping hole in our lives,” he added.