BDC’S chase OMC’S for payment of debts

The Chamber of Bulk Oil Distribution Companies is on the heels of Oil Marketing Companies and all other institutions that owe them for payment of all such debts.

The Oil marketing companies are the second largest debtors of the Bulk Distribution Companies apart from government, which leads the pack of Agencies and Institutions that owe.

Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber, Senyo Hosi says the time has come for his outfit to embark on a vigorous debt collection campaign to enable the Companies under the chamber survive, noting that the level of indebtedness to the chamber was reaching alarming proportions and that the earlier they launched that massive debt collection campaign, the better it will be for the survival of the Bulk Oil Distribution companies.

'Even the rail companies are owing us and if you owe and you don’t pay, how do you expect to be served again? If they don’t pay us, we cannot go and bring the product for people to buy and in all of this, we always consider the plight of the ordinary consumer and the suffering they go through without the product. That is why even as we speak, we are chasing everybody that owes us any amount of money to pay up so that we can continue to serve the good people of this country,’’ he said.

According to him, the inability of the debtors to service their debts create a lot of challenges for the Bulk Oil Distribution Companies because they are unable to attract the necessary letters of credit that will aid them import the product.

Mr. Hosi intimated that the Chamber was engaging all other stakeholders with a view to arriving at a consensus and the pave way for a resolution of the matter once and for all.

He announced that the chamber was also in the process of drawing up a credit policy that will regulate and streamline credit procedures as they serve their clients; adding that the credit policy would allow for some level of efficiency to be injected into the way things are done presently.

'As we speak, there are institutions that owe for very long periods now, some one year and above and if you buy on credit and it delays like this, it doesn’t augur well for the one that is owed,’’ he said.

He said the chamber wants to avoid the situation in which it will be forced to employ the cash and carry system, noting that the Oil Marketing companies who collect cash before serving the ordinary consumers must also ensure to always pay cash for the product.

Mr. Hosi said though a lot of institutions owe the Distribution Companies for very long durations, the same courtesy is not extended to them by the banks when they go to borrow, a situation he explained was negatively impacting on their operations.

According to him, the distribution companies started by offering two days credit to the Oil Marketing Companies and that this was subsequently increased to two weeks, adding that people were currently abusing the privilege of buying on credit, a situation he said was no longer acceptable.

He said the chamber had taken a serious view of the prevailing circumstances and will ensure that defaulting institutions are completely cut off from the credit regime, explaining that if such drastic measures are not employed, the generality of the Ghanaian people will be those who will bear the brunt, adding that Ghanaians and the ordinary consumers cannot be punished for no reason at all.

He therefore called on all defaulting companies to endeavour to service their indebtedness to the chamber and its companies or brace themselves for any sanctions and would be applied.