GRi Business &
Financial News 25 - 02 - 2002
Security
agencies investigate ECOWAS fake Cheque operation
Ghana
Oil Company goes into sale of aviation fuel
Blay
and Bagbin say budget to consolidate previous gains
Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 February 2002 - Security agencies are investigating a
syndicate made up of some West African nationals, including Ghanaians using
suspected fake ECOWAS Travellers Cheques to cash cedis at banks in the country.
Accordingly, banks have been cautioned to crosscheck before honouring ECOWAS
Travellers Cheques.
The Ghana
News Agency reports reliable security sources as saying that the Ghanaian
economy would suffer heavy financial losses if nothing was done to check the
situation. The perpetrators, after
cashing the cedis, turn to buy dollars on the open market, causing a rise in
the demand for dollars.
According
to the source, until ECOWAS Finance Ministers and Central Banks come out with a
mechanism to regulate the current system, it could destabilise currencies of
member countries operating the monetary union.
The source
recommended an in-depth review of the monetary system to ensure that it was
complied with, to avert any fraudulent acts. The security source suggested the
possible option of setting up limits on how much could be cashed at a
stipulated period. The cheques were introduced with the main objective of reducing
the risk of carrying huge sums of money for goods and services in the
sub-region.
The Ghana
News Agency says its investigations revealed that an individual within a few
days withdrew almost one billion cedis from the National Investment Bank, while
in February this year, about 3 billion cedis had been withdrawn from the same
bank by a handful of people.
Meanwhile,
two West African nationals whose identities are being withheld are helping the
police in their investigation on how they came by large quantities of ECOWAS
Travellers Cheques suspected to be fake. Ghana and Nigeria are the only members of ECOWAS who are
actively operating the sub-regional travellers cheque system.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 February 2002 – The Ghana Oil Company Limited (GOIL), a
wholly owned Ghanaian oil company would soon begin to export its lubricants to
neighbouring countries in the West Africa sub-region and at the same time enter
into the sale of aviation fuel to airlines.
Mr Ebenezer
B Sekyi Hughes, Chairman of the Board of Directors announcing this in Accra on
Friday night, said entering into the new ventures comes as a result of the
restructuring of the company to make it more viable and competitive in the oil
market.
"We
have already set the ball rolling. It is strange that the company did not
involve itself in aviation fuel. We have made contacts with Agip of Rome to
deal in the lucrative bitumen business." Mr Sekyi Hughes, who is a member
of Council of State said when interacting with the media at a soiree.
He said,
"the future of our company is very bright and the company will grow
stronger and stronger, thanks to the Golden Age of Business." Mr Sekyi
Hughes said in the company's efforts to restructure and cut cost and be
competitive and profitable, "we should at all times be mindful of our
social and developmental responsibility as the only 100 per cent Ghanaian owned
oil company".
"We
will continue to seek the interest of the company in line with the country's
developmental policy and have been sending oil to all parts of the country,
even to Wa, something which other companies, who are our competitors do not
do", he said.
Mr. Yaw
Agyemang-Duah, Managing Director, GOIL said the company considered the media as
allies and would very much count on their support in the interest of the
nation's development.
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Accra
(Greater Accra) 25 February 2002 - Freddie Blay, First Deputy Speaker and Alban
Bagbin, the Minority Leader have separately described the 2002 Budget as the
one which aimed at stabilising the economy.
In a brief
interview with the GNA at Parliament House just after Mr Yaw Osafo-Marfo had
presented the budget, Mr Bagbin said: "It is a stability budget. It seeks
to consolidate gains in the previous year." He said economic targets like
inflation, growth rate and fiscal discipline set out in the budget were not too
difficult to achieve.
Mr Bagbin
said, however, that the budget was fragile and would easily succumb to external
shocks since it was dependent on foreign donor inflows, adding, "if the
inflows failed to come, then our economy will be in trouble and targets might
not be achieved".
Mr Blay
said it was a good budget that sought to strengthen and build on the relative
stability achieved the previous year, "the economy is still not out of the
woods and there is need to plug the leakages in it and to lay the foundation
for a take-off."
He said:
"Taxes have not been increased, agriculture and industry are being given a
boost and those in the rural areas are being given credit for the flourishing
of cottage industries", Mr Blay said.
Mr Eddie
Akita, Deputy Minister of Defence, said the modest increase in the defence
budget would enable the Ministry to meet the retirement benefits of several
warrant officers and to allow new recruitments to be made.
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