Former Communications Minister, Dr Edward Omane Boamah says the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) is better known for collapsing businesses rather than creating employment to citizens.

The former minister revealed that publications in the media in the past two years have shown collapsing of Banks, Folding up of Companies, and Bankruptcy among others which have resulted in thousands of people losing their sources of livelihoods.

Dr Omane Boamah made the remark on Radio XYZ 93.1 when speaking to Inside Politics host Mugabe Maase on Thursday. Without mincing words he observed the NPP government first 2 years has rendered many people jobless due to some of its policies it implemented.

“I have a lot of publications to show for this. Yen.com, Pulse Gh, Ghanaweb to other sites have records of some companies that the NPP has collapsed ever since they assumed power,” he said in Akan.

He mentioned the laying down of about 2000 workers of Vodafone Ghana, the collapse of Beige Bank, Heritage Bank, Capital Bank, UT Bank, UniBank among others as a clear case of hard times in the country contrary to the campaign promises of creating enbough jobs by Nana Akufo-Addo prior to the 2016 elections.

“They [NPP] are known for collapsing businesses and we can all attest to that,” the former presidential spokesperon stated while asking Ghanaians to vote the Akufo-Addo government out in 2020 and bring back former president John Mahama who is now the flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC).

Collapsed Banks
The Akufo-Addo administration has been heavily criticised for the collapse of seven (7) banks within 2 years of taking over from the NDC administration.

Capital and UT Banks collapsed and were acquired by GCB Bank in 2017. The government collapsed uniBank, Sovereign, Royal, Beige and Construction Banks collapsed in August 2018 following liquidity issues.

Earlier this year, the Bank of Ghana revoked the license of Heritage Bank following what the Central Bank claimed was a number of anomalies relating to its licensing, the sources of its capital, and related party transactions.

Although the collapsing of the bank was not linked to liquidity issues, according to the Central Bank, it folded it up.

It is estimated that about 15,000 people have lost their jobs in relation to the fold up of some busineses, inflicting untold hardship on Ghanaians.

Last November, some eight hundred (800) workers of defunct UT and Capital Banks, who lost their jobs more than one year announced that life was becoming very unbearable for them.

Speaking to Mugabe Maase on ‘Inside Politics’ on Radio XYZ 93.1, spokesperson for the ex workers, Raymond Addai-Danquah noted that they are battling for their exit pay and almost all members of the group find it extremely difficult to make ends meet.

Menzgold

A gold dealership firm, Menzgold was collapsed last year. About 1000 persons lost their jobs. About 60,000 Ghanaians who invested in the company are battling with how to make ends meet. Some of the customers of Menzgold have told various reporters their businesses are collapsing. Others have laid workers off because their capital dwindled as a result of the collapse of Menzgold.

The customers of thendefunct company are asking government to get Nana Appiah Mensah, the CEO of the company who was arrested in Dubai, released in order to have their locked-up cash retrieved.

Last month, members of the Coalition of Aggrieved Customers of Menzgold picketed at the offices of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Attorney General’s Department in protest over the failure to retrieve their locked-up investments.

President of the Coalition, Timothy Binob, in a press statement said the coalition had buried more than 15 of its members due to shock and heart failure, as a result of their locked-up funds, hence the action”.

There have been various reports of media houses laying off workers because of the rising cost of dooing businesses. They include GN Media and Media General (owners of TV3, Onua FM and 3 FM).