Bank Absconds With Farmers’ Monies

Farmers at Kenyase in the Asutifi District of the Brong Ahafo region have called on President Atta Mills to help them retrieve monies they deposited at the Tano Rural Bank which have been stolen since April 2006.

According to the farmers, who presented a petition to the Brong Ahafo Regional Minister to be forwarded to the President recently, the amount totaled GH¢110,579.

The farmers noted that they have employed several measures, including court actions, to retrieve their monies but it has not yielded any results.

Numbering over 75, the victims revealed that their living conditions had worsened due to the treatment meted to them by the bank.

They also expressed dissatisfaction with inadequate compensation given to them by Newmont Ghana Gold Limited.

“Some of us deposited the money at the bank for safe-keeping in a bid to find alternative economic ventures to invest into.

“We are greatly disappointed because in the first instance, when we were treated unfairly by the mining company, we did not have any mouthpiece to speak on our behalf, not even the state regulatory bodies and now a rural bank,” one farmer cried.

According to them, checks conducted at the liquidators indicated that the matter had been forwarded to the Brong Ahafo Regional branch of the Economic and Organised Crimes Office (EOCO), but when they contacted the officer on phone, he denied knowledge of the case.

They expressed surprise at the response from EOCO since according to them the Office was aware of the genesis of the matter and should have done something about it.

The Deputy Brong Ahafo Regional Minister, Eric Opoku, who received the petition, assured them of government’s support in apprehending management of the bank in order to retrieve their monies.

Source: Vivianna Mensah, Sunyani