BoG response to media speculations

BOG’S RESPONSE TO THE MEDIA DISCUSSION OF A STAFF MEMBER, MR. RICHARD DENTEH’S LETTER TO THE HEAD OF HUMAN RESOURCE

Mr. Richard Denteh’s letter dated July 30, 2007 and titled “VAULT OPERATIONS”, raised a number of issues that must be placed in the proper context as follows:

• The Bank of Ghana’s currency operations follow laid-down procedures and security arrangements that involve a number of officials comprising Currency Officers, the Bank’s Security Personnel, Internal Audit and Banking Department Staff, Armed Guards (from the Ghana Armed Forces), Escort Security (from the Ghana Police Service) and in the case of currency incineration, a representative of the Controller and Accountant General’s Department. All these parties have individual and collective responsibility to protect the integrity of these currency operations.

• All currency transactions are audited by both the Bank’s Internal Audit Department and the External Auditors on a regular basis.

• With reference to the statement in Mr. Denteh’s letter that he had difficulty balancing the June 30, 2007 books, the facts are that there are waybills and bin cards available that document all currency movements. The June 30, 2007 accounts are no exception. The Bank undertook on May 24th and 28th 2007 cash movements to GCB and Apex Bank as part of its contingency arrangements. This freed up space for the new currency. Amounts totaling ¢269.4 billion (that is, 1,430 boxes) were lodged with GCB and Apex Bank (Takoradi and Accra branches) in designated vaults and subsequently issued out to banks on request, in line with the normal operational procedures of the Bank. Indeed, some of these cash movements from GCB and Apex head office to meet the banks’ requests during the period of May 24, 2007 to June 19, 2007 were made with the involvement of Mr. Denteh. These operations are fully documented. The operational procedures in place allow Mr. Denteh and others on the schedule to seek to stay generally informed about the activities that take place at any time. It also allowed him to specify in minute detail the currencies involved in these operations as reflected in his letter, although his stated amount of ¢230 billion was inaccurate.

• As a critical component of the currency exchange programme, the Bank of Ghana made allocations of the new Ghana cedi notes and pesewas to all commercial banks prior to the issuance of the new currency to the public on July 3, 2007. All these currency allocations have been duly accounted for by the banks.

• The shredding of soiled currency at Kade on July 27, 2007 was a pilot test destruction exercise as part of plans to establish a suitable and secure option for the destruction of soiled currency, which is an integral part of currency operations.

• The General Services Complex vaults were designated the hub of the re-denomination exercise and Mr. Denteh had