Scores of angry customers of the beleaguered investment company, Menzgold Ghana Limited, yesterday, stormed some principal streets to demand payment of monies owed them by the company.
Though the roads were busy and the major streets buzzed with traffic, the aggrieved customers unrelentingly pushed, shoved and shouted all in the bid to get their voices heard.
Speaking to leaders of the group, the demonstration was a formal step to bring to the notice of Government and Parliament, the woes of the customers of the company.
The group in turn expects government to compel their investee to honour the numerous promises made to the customers.
Following the impasse between the gold-trading firm, the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bank of Ghana (BoG), the customers believe they have been at the receiving end.
According to them, Menzgold had promised to pay 15% of customers’ principal as the first trench to fulfilling their promise and obligations of paying fully the remaining percentage to customers within 90 days, beginning from October 9, 2018.
But this promise, customers say, have only been a mirage.
“We find this action of Menzgold Ghana Limited not only as a betrayal of our trust but as a means to frustrate our future and render us poor from our own monies,” President of the aggrieved customers, Timm Binob told the PUBLISHER.
Demo
Clad in red and black―signifying war against their investee, customers of Menzgold were captured holding placards with inscriptions like; ‘Pay Us Our Money Now’ ‘Ken Ofori Atta, my greedy vote is waiting for you In 2020, ‘NAM is 419’ ‘Sell Menzgold properties to pay’, amongst others.
The aggrieved customers also sang and chanted to the famous ‘Bobolibobo’ rhythm—with a message for NAM1 that, if he failed to pay their money, he will feel the ‘bobolibobo’—to wit, “NAM1 will feel the heat.”
In what could be described as a peaceful demonstration, the sentiments of the customers could not be hidden—from ‘hilarious’ to ‘profound’ almost every customer had a stunning story to tell.
Some of the demonstrators spoke to the PUBLISHER.
According to Sarah who claims she had an amount of GHC 110,000 stuck in the Menzgold account, she wants the CEO of the company, Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM1) to be arrested and forced to pay.
“We are demonstrating so that government will intervene. If it had been someone who went to steal cassava, he or she would have been thrown into prison by now but a whole NAM1 is sitting on our money but he cannot be arrested,” she said.
“If the government say’s NAM1 is running an illegal business, then he should be arrested if not they should leave him alone to do his work. The government cannot be neutral on this matter,” another customer said.
Low Turn Out
Many expected that the ‘Menzgold demo’ would be the demonstration of the year considering the ‘noise’ made in the media but the PUBLISHER can reliably say, the demonstration was flawed.
According to the Secretary of the group, Samuel Odartey, the low turnout was as a result of some customers migrating to the Menzgold online platform.
He further attributed the dispiriting numbers to customers who had white collar jobs and their inability to leave their workplace for a demonstration.
The protestors started the protest from the Obra Spot and ended at the Accra Hearts of Oak Park in Accra.
By: Grace Ablewor Sogbey/ [email protected]
Comments are closed.