Bolgatanga Central MP Isaac Adongo has called for the arrest of Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta for using GHC15.6 billion of taxpayers’ money to collapse nine local banks.

The opposition member of Parliament’s Finance Committee said the banks would not have collapsed if Mr Ofori-Atta had settled contractors who borrowed loans from the now-defunct banks so they could be afloat.

Mr Adongo questioned why Mr Ofori-Atta refused to pay the banks the GHS5.7 billion owed them but doled out GHC15.6 billion to collapse them.

His comments follow the arrest and arraignment of the founder and former CEO of UT Bank, Mr Kofi Amoabeng and the founder and former CEO of The Beige Bank, Mr Mike Nyinaku, who is on remand.

They have both been charged with stealing and money laundering.

Speaking on Accra 100.5FM with Kwabena Prah Jnr, the lawmaker said the Minister of Finance should rather be arrested and not the founders and managers of those banks.

“If President Akufo-Addo wants to penalise managers behind the collapse of the banks, then he should have first arrested his cousin Ken Ofori-Atta, the Finance Minister. The banks wouldn’t have collapsed if the Finance Minister and the government had settled the debts of contractors who were also the main debtors of the collapsed banks. The President should be bold and arrest Ken Ofori-Atta before he makes any move to prosecute the accused bank managers,” Mr Adongo said.

He described the arrest of the two bank founders as a show-off, adding that only the court can determine their guilt or innocence.

Mr Adongo wondered why the government, after destroying banks belonging to people it perceives as opposition elements, is still bent on tarnishing the images of those people.