The Bank of Ghana has told Parliament it will not comply with an investigation into the revocation of the licenses of UT Bank and UniBank, amidst rife speculations of a hatchet job to intentionally collapse the banks.
In a detailed response through its lawyers, Bentsi-Enchill Letsa and Ankomah, the central bank said that it, “will not participate in the investigation being conducted by Parliament, arguing the probe flies in the face of the Constitution.”
It accuses the owners of the banks, UT Bank’s Prince Kofi Amoabeng and UniBank’s Dr. Kwabena Duffour, of seeking to use Parliament to review its decision over the revocation of their licenses.
BiG told Parliament that this move by the owners of the bank is an affront the autonomy and independence of the central bank even as captured under the Banks and Specialized Deposit-Taking Institutions Act, 2016 (Act 930).
“The BSDTI Act provides how persons who are aggrieved with such decisions may seek redress for their grievances, and the prescribed resolution mechanisms do not include recourse to Parliament,” wrote Ace Annan Ankomah, the attorney for the BoG.
BoG also argues that by its petition, the two bank owners have also invited Parliament to instruct the BoG on how to carry out its responsibilities contrary section 3 (2) and section 4 (1A) of the Bank of Ghana Act , 2002 (Act 613).
The response comes after Mr. Kofi Amoaneng and Dr. Kwabena Duffour petitioned Parliament to probe the BoG and the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) over the revocation of their banking licenses.
The petitioners among others also asked Parliament to order BoG to restore their license.
Parliament after setting up a seven-member committee to probe the issues asked the central bank to file a response to the petition.
