Minority Leader and Effutu MP, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has slammed the financial management of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod).
Afenyo-Markin argued that an institution trading in gold should not be recording losses.
According to Afenyo-Markin, the reported GoldBod losses could not simply be attributed to market conditions, arguing that gold trade presented opportunities for profitability.
Speaking at a Minority press conference in Parliament on August 18, Afenyo-Markin stated, “These losses are not bad luck. You don’t trade in gold and make losses. They are not a difficult market”.
“They expose the crass incompetence of GoldBod’s management and misaligned policies of the government,” he said.
“No serious institution loses this money by accident. This is what happens when an untouchable few are handed the nation’s gold with no one watching,” he said.
Also, Alexander Afenyo-Markin has said the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod) has made a GH¢22 billion loss to the state.
According to Afenyo-Markin, the GoldBod must account for the GH¢22 billion financial loss to the state.
He argued that the Minority would not be deterred by attacks or criticisms from GoldBod officials as they push for public accountability.
Speaking at a press conference in Parliament on Tuesday, August 18, Afenyo-Markin stated, “So they must account for the GH¢22 billion loss. It must account for it because it amounts to causing financial loss to the state”.
“GoldBod is responsible for causing financial loss to the state and the Minority will say this and say it firmly and boldly,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter the adjectives that they use to describe or to attack our personalities, and we know a day of reckoning will come,” he said.
The minority further argued that GoldBod cannot hide behind an agency role to escape accountability.
Afenyo-Markin rejected GoldBod’s claims that its role as an agent of the Bank of Ghana (BoG) shields it from responsibility for losses arising from the country’s gold trading operations.
He added, “Gold Board cannot hide behind accounting technicalities”.
“Gold Board is entitled to make the accounting point that it was purchasing gold on behalf of the Bank of Ghana. But agency does not extinguish operational responsibility,” he said.
“An agent entrusted with billions of cedis or public resources remains responsible for the quality of its execution,” he said.
Afenyo-Markin added, “If an institution earns transaction-based income for purchasing, assaying, and aggregating gold, while the financier bears the underlying trading losses, then increasing transaction volumes may increase the agent’s revenue, even where the overall programme destroys value for the principal”.
“Any responsible government confronted with these 22 billion losses should immediately investigate whether the incentive structure encouraged excessive volumes, inadequate pricing discipline, or insufficient attention to trading costs,” he said.
“We therefore reject any attempt to answer the public concerns merely by pointing to GoldBod’s reported surplus,” he said.
@ghnow_ “You have made GH¢22 billion loss just from selling gold.” — Minority Leader quizzes GoldBod #GHnow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
@ghnow_ “How Much Bail Will GoldBod Pay for the Losses?” — Minority Leader Quizzes GoldBod #GHnow #fyp ♬ original sound – GHnow
