The aggrieved customers of Menzgold have embarked on a peaceful protest in the principal streets of Tarkwa, the capital of the Tarkwa Nsuaem Municipality, in the Western Region. The group; Coalition of Aggrieved Customers of Menzgold (CACM) demands that government as a matter of urgency includes them in the bailout package offered the defunct microfinance and deposit taking companies.
National Chairman for the group, Mr. Isaac Nyarko in an interview with the media at the sidelines of demonstration said their call for a bailout is justified in the sense that Act 929 of the constitution which establishes the regulator; Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) assigns a responsibility to protect the interest of Ghanaians who transact businesses with fund management institutions
We have to be treated fairly. Even the President has admitted that the regulators failed in their dury. And so once this has happened and he’s assured all Ghanaians that all depositors will have their monies, we Menzgold Customers should also have our money. We are protected by the law.”
According to Mr. Nyarko, the customers have a good case to battle out with government to pay their locked up funds. He added that affected customers would be empowered by the law to compel government include them in the bailout package.
“Menzgold Customers have a good case and that we need to be bailed out. Once the law makes it clearly that those who are unlicensed and SEC has satisfactorily admitted that they need to regulate them, those people also fall under SEC controls. And once SEC has directed Menzgold to pay us and collapsed it, SEC is not being fair to us,” he stated.
Some of the placards read as follows;
Who owns Metalica Refinery, Menzgold Customers deserve better
“Government did you close down Menzgold to dupe customers?”
“Menzgold Customers deserve better, equal justice before the laws of Ghana
“Over 75 Menzgold Customers dead and thousands bed-riden
“SEC if you have bailed out the licensed then bailout the unlicensed, SEC Law 929.”