'You Can't Sue Shatta Wale, Stonebuoy, Okyeame Kwame, Others For Endorsing Menzgold' - Lawyer

Stonebuoy (L) NAM 1 (middle) and Shatta Wale (R)

Nana Obiri Boahen, a renowned politician and private legal practitioner has waded into the Menzgold saga, stating that affected victims of the defunct gold dealership firm cannot blame celebrities who endorsed the company for their woes.

In an interview with Agyemang Prempeh (Agyengo) on Power 97.9 FM's award winning entertainment show - Power Entertainment on Saturday, the NPP deputy General Secretary observed that advertisers cannot be blamed for the poor quality of a product, according to the laws of the country.

“These people (customers) were warned by the Bank of Ghana many times, but they did not heed to the advice," he said adding "Why did they not shine their eyes?"

To him the laws state that buyers should do their background checks before purchasing goods or entering into any investment.

Okyeame kwame's endorsement flyer

When Agyengo insisted many affected customers invested with Menzgold because of the massive endorsement from music stars including Okyeame Kwame, Dancehall acts like Shatta Wale and Stonebuoy, as well as some movie stars such as Jackie Appiah, the former deputy Interior Minsiter stated that the "onus lied on the customers to shine their eyes" before doing business with the company.

“The laws say you must be prudent buyer..In every situation you have to shine your eyes. This principle of shine your eyes go through every aspect of life. The law says be vigilant and be a prudent buyer,” he added.

The Menzgold CEO, Nana Appiah Mensah (NAM 1) is battling to pay his clients who are more than 60,000 amidst charges of fraud and money laundering.

The business man, whose firm was ordered by government to halt its gold dealership business in September 2018 over authorization breaches, was reportedly arrested in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on December 7,2018 over an alleged “deal gone bad”, the Ghana Police said on Monday.

It is emerging that the police in Dubai has charged NAM 1 for fraud.

In 2018, his Menzgold business was shut down by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after it realised that the company had veered off what it was licensed to do.

Some of Menzgold customers say they invested with the company because NAM 1 was always almost in the company of state officials, especially the Creative Arts and Tourism Minister, prior to the closure of Menzgold.