Mahama must investigate GoldBod over alleged US$1.7bn loss — Abena Osei-Asare

Member of Parliament for Atiwa East and Chairperson of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, Abena Osei-Asare, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to order further investigations into the operations of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod).

She said concerns over the reported losses associated with the domestic gold purchase programme require greater transparency and accountability from GoldBod and the Bank of Ghana (BoG).

According to her, the reported US$1.7 billion loss, equivalent to about GH¢22 billion, is too significant to be ignored, particularly at a time when government is struggling to raise funds for critical sectors.

In a video shared on Tuesday, August 11, and seen by ModernGhana News, the lawmaker said the reported figure contrasts with the US$214 million loss reported by the Bank of Ghana in its 2025 financial statements.

She questioned how the difference of about US$1.4 billion was treated in the central bank’s financial statements.

She also criticised what she described as significant expenditure on the gold purchase programme at a time when government ministries and agencies are struggling to receive their full budgetary allocations.

The former Minister of State at the Finance Ministry said part of the reported loss could have been used to support the recruitment of nurses, noting that the Ministry of Health had cited a need for about GH¢6 billion for the exercise.

She further questioned why the BoG was allowed to incur what she described as a GH¢22 billion loss on behalf of GoldBod while GoldBod was reporting profits from its operations.

“If you can make a loss of 22 billion, when 6 billion of that loss can be used to employ more than 10,000 nurses, clearly you have a case to tell the people of Ghana respectfully,” Mrs Osei-Asare said.

She also raised concerns about the BoG’s negative equity position, which she said increased from GH¢58 billion to GH¢93 billion, while government provided GH¢5 billion to support the central bank.

Mrs Osei-Asare said she was, however, “temporarily relieved” that the BoG had stopped spending on GoldBod under the previous arrangement from July 1, 2026.

She called for GoldBod’s current programme to be brought before Parliament for scrutiny, arguing that the institution should regularly report to Parliament on its operations and financial performance.