Debts Drown GTFC

The Ghana Trade Fair Company (GTFC) is indebted to the tune of about GH¢2 million.

The company’s accounts have also been frozen owing to disputes in court over its indebtedness to both private and public organizations.

As a result, management of the company cannot settle its debts since it is unable to generate revenue.

Captain Kojo Butah (rtd), Board Chairman of GTFC, who made this known on an Accra-based radio station yesterday, said an arrangement to pay GH¢5,000 monthly from the accounts of GTFC to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to gradually offset its accumulated bills failed to go through because a court in Accra had issued a garnishee order on it.

In the unlikely event that the company fails to find money to pay its debts, the company stands the risk of being sold.

Captain Butah went on to explain some transactions that had culminated in the unfortunate situation.

“A payment we had to make to a company that provided shelf schemes for making our trade fairs was bought at 160,000 Euros and we didn’t pay it. It started accruing interest. As at now, it’s about 60,000 Euros.

They went to court to seek judgment to pay so the court upheld their petition and garnisheed our operating account.”

Commenting further, the board chairman noted: “The second issue has to do with our former chief executive officer, Madam Esther Ofori who retired in 2009 but has not been paid her entitlements yet.

We owe her about $80,000. She also went to court and the court asked us to lose certain items to her. In the process, the court garnisheed our accounts.”

He stated that there were other debts owed to the Ghana Revenue Authority totaling about GH¢80,000 which has been outstanding since 2003.

He said the company’s financial position was affecting GTFC’s operations. If the situation is not addressed immediately, it could affect both national and international events lined up by GTFC, this year.