The Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), Millison Narh, yesterday charged at the Members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament over an alleged missing $600 million from the bank�s foreign assets reserves, prompting the chairman of the committee to ask him to control his emotions.
The deputy governor told the committee members that the impression created by a section of the media that $600 million was missing from the bank was completely misleading and that officials from the bank had not �chopped� any public fund as being speculated.
Members of the committee, at its July 7 sitting this year, had expressed serious concerns over the bank�s records of 9.7% increase in net foreign exchange receipts from December 2011 to December 2012. The measure resulted in a decrease in the country�s reserves from $5.83 billion to $5.28 billion.
This came to light when officials of the bank first appeared before the committee to answer questions on Ghana�s foreign exchange receipts in 2012.
The head of treasury who represented the governor at the sitting, Yaw Abalo, had told the committee that the supposed $596.8 million was used to pay government debts and for the transaction of inter-bank markets, but when pressed further to provide details of such transactions and payments, he could not do so.
But the deputy governor, who was clearly upset about the reported unaccounted $596.8 million from the country�s reserves, told the PAC that during that period the Bank of Ghana had to intervene to support government in the importation of oil because the commercial banks which were supporting the Bulk Distribution Companies had been handicapped by the serious depreciation of the cedi.
He said some of the money was used to pay government debts and other unbudgeted exigencies.
He told the committee that management of the reserves was a bit complicated and technical and therefore the bank would be much willing to organise a seminar for members of the committee for them to better appreciate reserves issues.
When asked about the current situation of the country�s reserves, the deputy governor said it was still falling but the bank was doing everything to stabilise it.
According to him, cocoa had brought in $1.7 billion and gold also added $1 billion and therefore things had started normalising.
He noted that the depletion of the country�s reserves has direct consequence on depreciation of the cedi and that �now that cocoa and gold have brought in some foreign exchange, the cedi has also stabilised.�
He told PAC that the nation lost about $1.3 billion as a result of commodity price shocks in the year under review, which could have been used to shore up the economy.
A member of the committee who is Member of Parliament for Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai, Kingsley Aboagye-Gyedu, told DAILY GUIDE after the sitting that he was least impressed with the answers given by the deputy governor as to the whereabouts of the $596.8 million from the country�s reserves.
�We are talking about figures and the right thing for the man to have done was to tell us how much was used for what and what?� he queried, adding that the posture of the deputy governor was intimidating, knowing very well that members of the committee will be interested in the dwindling foreign reserves issue,� he underscored.
Another member, MP for Atiwa East, Abena Osei-Asare, also told this paper that answers given by the deputy governor were not convincing and that he should have said the money was used to pay for some loans that the government contracted because �that is what is portrayed in the Auditor-General�s report.�
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