“GoldBod cannot make losses, Change Sammy Gyamfi If he’s not capable” – Martin Ampim

NPP Organizer for the Biakoye Constituency, Martin Ampim, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to order an independent forensic investigation into the conflicting reports over the financial performance of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod).

Mr Ampim made the call following a disagreement between the opposition and the GoldBod Chief Executive Officer, Sammy Gyamfi, over whether GoldBod incurred losses or generated surpluses from its gold trading operations.

The NPP Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, and former Deputy Finance Minister Abena Osei-Asare have cited an International Monetary Fund (IMF) report as evidence that gold transactions resulted in losses.

Mr Gyamfi, however, has relied on the Auditor-General’s report to dispute the claim, maintaining that GoldBod did not make losses but rather recorded surpluses.

Speaking on the Bubunɛ Breakfast Show on Tuesday, August 18, Mr Ampim said the conflicting accounts warranted an independent investigation to establish the actual financial position of GoldBod and determine where responsibility lies.

"GoldBod cannot make losses. Change Sammy Gyamfi if he is not capable," Mr Ampim said.

He argued that if GoldBod was unable to manage its operations without incurring losses, the government should not hesitate to make changes at the institution.

Mr Ampim, however, stressed that the controversy should not be settled through political arguments, insisting that an independent inquiry was the best way to establish the facts.

“What should the President do? He must order an independent investigation. Let them dig into it. Let them unravel what happened and let us put things right,” he stated.

According to Mr Ampim, the investigation should establish whether the reported losses were directly attributable to GoldBod or whether the transactions in question were conducted by officials of the Bank of Ghana.

He explained that prior to the establishment of GoldBod, the Bank of Ghana had responsibility for trading in gold. Following the creation of GoldBod, he said, some of those functions were transferred to the new institution.

Mr Ampim therefore questioned the distinction being made between GoldBod's operations and the reported losses attributed to gold trading.

He also challenged Mr Gyamfi's reliance on the Auditor-General's report while the opposition had cited the IMF's assessment.

Mr Ampim argued that the IMF should not simply be dismissed because its findings were inconvenient to the government.

“When we were in government, they said our economy was junk, and the IMF said, ‘It’s junk.’ And they were shouting, ‘It’s junk.’ Truly, it was junk. So today, if the IMF comes out to say that the gold you sold incurred a loss, and you say today we shouldn’t believe them, but when we were in government, you believed everything they said?” he asked.

He further questioned the independence of some of the institutions involved in the debate, arguing that the leadership of both the Bank of Ghana and GoldBod had been appointed under the current administration.

In his view, an independent investigation would therefore provide a more credible basis for resolving the conflicting claims.

Mr Ampim said such an investigation should determine whether GoldBod made losses or surpluses, the circumstances surrounding the transactions, and whether any public funds were lost.

He also maintained that the reported figure of about US$214 million was too significant to be treated as a political talking point.

According to him, such an amount could have made a substantial contribution to infrastructure and other development projects across the country.

Beyond the GoldBod controversy, Mr Ampim expressed concern about the economic conditions facing ordinary Ghanaians.

While acknowledging the importance of gold to Ghana's economy, he argued that the economic gains being discussed at the macro level were not sufficiently reflected in the pockets of ordinary citizens.

“Go to Makola today. Go and ask the businessman whether things are cheap. Everything is expensive,” he said.

Mr Ampim also warned the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) that its handling of the economy and governance could have political consequences ahead of the 2028 general elections.

He argued that the government's strong parliamentary majority meant that it had fewer external checks and therefore carried a greater responsibility to ensure effective internal accountability.

He further criticised delays in filling key government vacancies, attributing such delays to competing interests within political parties.

Mr Ampim maintained that his criticism was not intended to undermine GoldBod, which he acknowledged could play an important role in Ghana's economy.

Rather, he said the institution must operate transparently and be subjected to proper scrutiny whenever questions arise over the management of public resources.

He reiterated that if the government concludes that GoldBod's leadership is unable to deliver, it should take the necessary action.

“We will hold them to it. Not a single cedi will go missing,” Mr Ampim stressed.