Government exposes minority on MacDan Shipping loan claims

Government has responded to claims by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) minority in parliament it usurped its powers to approve GHS10,459,500.00 loan to MacDan Shipping Company Ltd.

“It is not true. …The banks did its normal business and decided that its client MacDan Shipping Company Ltd. was qualified to get the credit facility to do it business and the banks wrote on June 2017 to the shareholders of the bank because their board has not been constituted”, a Deputy Minister of Information revealed.

According to Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, per the processes the government for that matter, Agriculture Development Bank (ADB) did no wrong in giving the loan to MacDan Shipping.

“Nothing untoward happened”, the minister Wednesday stated on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show claiming the minority was only doing politics with the issue.

The minority in a press conference addressed by its leader, Hon. Haruna Iddrisu alleged the Finance Minister, Mr. Ken Ofori Atta did not follow due processes before giving such loan accusing him of conflict of interest.

“The Minority has received with shock details of yet another action taken by the Minister for Finance, Hon. Ken Ofori-Atta, which is not only a usurpation of the role of the Board of Directors of a listed company, the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), but also a confirmation of the increasing cases of financial and procurement malfeasance being superintended by the Minister”, the minority leader alleged.

They claimed to have a letter dated 9th June, 2017 with Reference No. PID/PEU/01/2017 and signed by the Finance Minister giving approval of a loan to MacDan Shipping Company Limited to buttress their allegations.

However, responding to the allegations, Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah said the conference was just to divert attention from the government policy of the implementation of the free Senior High School.