General News of 2012-09-25

President Mahama Forces SSNIT to Take up Brother’s Debt

Deputy Communications Director of the New Patriotic Party, Yaw Buaben Asamoah, says SSNIT has been forced by President John Dramani Mahama to use funds of suffering Ghanaian workers to retire a GH¢57.2 million debt owed by his brother, Ibrahim Mahama, to struggling Ghanaian bank, Merchant Bank.

Mr Buaben Asamoah made this startling revelation when he addressed a press conference at the NPP’s headquarters to expose President Mahama and his involvement in corruption ever since the NDC assumed the reins of power.

Mr Asamoah explained that SSNIT, which held a 98% stake in the Merchant, in August this year, sold 75% of its stake to South African Bank, First Rand. At the time of the sale, Merchant Bank was reeling under some GH¢330 million debt, with Ibrahim Mahama being the largest debtor, contributing 19.2% of Merchant Bank’s total indebtedness.

According to Mr Buaben Asamoah, a 22nd August Reuters report, noted that First Rand agreed to acquire SSNIT’s 75% stake, excluding the GH¢330 million worth of loans on Merchant Bank’s balance sheet, which has to be taken up by SSNIT.

“What this deal, struck under President John Dramani Mahama means is that the suffering workers of Ghana have been forced to swallow the bad debts incurred by some business people so that those business people can go on enjoying their life of luxury, including flying around in their private jets,” Mr Buabeng Asamoah noted.

He continued, “The pension of Ghanaian workers have been sacrificed to pay off debts that they knew nothing of so that some few people could continue having access to their privileged lives of comfort and opulence.”

The NPP communications director maintained that the NPP did not wish the junior brother of President Mahama ill, “but when your company falls into bad debt and cannot service its loans and the pension fund of the workers of Ghana are forced by the President, who happens to be your brother, for that pension fund to ring fence and take on your debt, then we have to ask some serious questions.”

According to the NPP man, the Managing Director who approved the loan for Ibrahim Mahama, without the consent of the bank, has been fired by Merchant bank, and not surprisingly is now in the office of President Mahama working as an advisor.

Mr Asamoah urged Ghanaians not to risk voting for President Dramani Mahama in the December polls, as he lacks credibility, warning that “a vote for JDM is a vote for hopelessness for the youth and a vote for corruption.”