General News of Thursday, 18 September 2008

Source: Chronicle

Ghana's Hidden Treasure in Switzerland

A four-man delegation of the Friends of Oman Ghana Trust Fund, led by His Awardship Kobla Asamani, last Friday, held a meeting with the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Mr. Kwadwo Baah Wiredu, and his entourage, mainly made up of personnel from the Legal Department of the Ministry.

During discussions, several concerns were raised, the least being Ghana's credibility in pursuit of retrieving billions of dollars, locked up in the United Bank of Switzerland (UBS), to its logical conclusion.

After a careful analysis by the Group, it was agreed by both parties that Ghana had everything to gain, and nothing to lose, by moving in a correct manner in order to retrieve the money. This approach was agreed upon by all the parties which attended the meeting.

The approach, which was concluded upon, required a direct trip to the UBS, with all necessary information in hand.

An initial misunderstanding, that any Ghanaian diplomatic passport could be used, was quickly corrected by the Group, stating that the Sole Trustee, who is the sitting President or his Assignee, who must be 65 years and over, must possess a specific diplomatic passport with a certain number in it.

Another concern, which was corrected by the delegation, was the fact that Mr. Gregg Frazier requested a diplomatic passport for himself, but instead the passport must be possessed by the Sole Trustee, with Mr. Gregg Frazier being an advisor to the team when set up.

The meeting ended after certain controversies were laid to rest, with the parties involved agreeing to help retrieve the money for the country.

The Minister of Finance then directed the Bank of Ghana, to be the mediator in the retrieval of the monies.

The Chief of the Group, His Awardship Kobla Asamani, also the Country Director of the Country Awards Council - Ghana, in his address to the media after the meeting, on behalf of the Friends of Oman Ghana Trust Fund, expressed his heartfelt appreciation to the people of Ghana for their concerns and their efforts.

His Awardship Kobla Asamani, therefore, called on Ghanaians to continue to add their voice to the struggle, to ensure Ghanaians were relieved from poverty.