The President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has broken his silence on the Menzgold crisis, admonishing Ghanaians to be guided in future.
The President’s comments come days after hundreds of aggrieved customers of the troubled gold trading firm thronged the streets of Tarkwa in the Western region to demonstrate over their locked up funds.
The customers for months have been demanding payment of their principal investments after the gold dealership company was instructed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to halt operations.
Several efforts by the customers targeted at the company to get their monies have failed to yield any positive results.
Touching on the crisis when he delivered his 3rd State of the Nation Address, President Akufo-Addo described it as a tragic phenomenon that appeared to have occurred in plain sight, and affected a lot of people, “in spite of warnings from official institutions.”
He said as the authorities try to unravel the intricacies of “what happened in the Menzgold saga, I admonish all Ghanaians to learn the necessary lessons for the future, even as State institutions work to bring a resolution to the matter, and those who are seen to have indulged in criminal activities, are brought to justice.”
Aggrieved Menzgolders warn of disruption in next demo
Meanwhile, the aggrieved customers warned that the Tarkwa demonstration in the Western Region was the last peaceful protest they would hold.
According to them, the next series of demonstrations they would be embarking on would be disruptive to force the government to respond to their sordid plight.
“We are not going to sit down today or tomorrow to let Nana Appiah Mensah dupe us. We are not going to tolerate that. From today, this is the last demonstration and if we do not hear anything from the government we are going to do our worst,” one of the demonstrators said.
Another added: “The government has been sitting down doing nothing. This is just the tip of the iceberg. If we don’t hear anything from the president, if we don’t hear anything from the government we shall do our worst. They should take this as a caution.”
Security Analysts have warned the frustration of the aggrieved customers Menzgold, could result in a full blown civil war in Ghana.
