Give government credit for saving 1.5m depositors – Baako

The government of Ghana, together with the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Ghana made the “best” decision by merging five struggling local banks to form the all-new state-owned Consolidated Bank Ghana (CBG), Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul-Malik Kweku Baako has said.

The BoG in August this year merged The Royal Bank, The Beige bank, Sovereign Bank, The Construction Bank and uniBank due to their insolvency.

A year before the merging of the five banks, two other local banks, Capital and UT, had been given to the state-owned GCB Bank.

Mr Baako said although the move by the government led to some retrenchment in the banking sector, it was the best under the circumstances because the government saved the deposits of 1.5 million Ghanaians.

The veteran journalist noted that although people have lost their jobs, it is better than to have allowed 1.5 million Ghanaians lose their deposits.

Speaking on Kokrokoo on Accra-based Peace FM on Wednesday, 21 November 2018, Mr Baako said: “The government, the Finance Ministry and the Bank of Ghana, the decision they took on the banking crisis is the best in the circumstances. They rescued the deposits of 1.5 million Ghanaians.

“It is critical some workers have lost their jobs, but if I were to choose between the two options, that is, for the workers to retain their jobs and the depositors to lose their money, no.

“…1.5 million Ghanaian depositors? Can you imagine if the banks have collapsed just like that and we had lost all those deposits, can you imagine the ripple effects in this country, the social tensions the political tensions?

“This government took the right decision that in the circumstances, considering all the challenges, let me rescue the citizenry, numbering 1.5 million.”

Finance Minister Mr Ken Ofori-Atta, while presenting the 2019 budget statement in parliament on 15 November 2018, said through the government’s intervention in the banking sector, deposits of some GHS11 billion have been saved.

In addition to that, he said, some 2,661 jobs were saved.