Controversy Over Kodua Fokuo’s Appointment as MD of NIB: Experts Jump to His Defense | General News

Mr. Tweneboa Kodua Fokuo has taken over from Mr. Samuel Sarpong as the Managing Director of the National Investment Bank (NIB). 

His appointment took effect from Monday, May 13, 2024.

In a memo sent to the staff, the Bank explained that Mr. Fukuo was appointed by “the Majority shareholder” of the bank.

It further explained that Mr. Philip Ofori-Asante has been nominated as Deputy Managing Director following in Mr. Fokuo’s  footsteps.

However the appointment of Mr. Tweneboah Kodua Fokuo has encountered a lot of criticisms from the minority and other Economists over his political affiliations and interest, indicating that his appointment by the president will worsen the already distressed bank.

The Minority in Parliament has raised concerns about the government’s handling of the National Investment Bank (NIB), alleging it has become a platform for members of the New Patriotic Party.

In a press statement, the Minority caucus vehemently opposed the appointment of the NPP Parliamentary Candidate for Manso Nkwanta in the Ashanti Region as MD for the bank.

The Vice President of IMANI Africa, Bright Simons, was the first to raise alarm over the appointment, questioning why the Bank of Ghana approved it considering that the MD would be engaged in rigorous campaigning for political office.

The Minority caucus believes that such appointments undermine public trust in the government’s ability to manage national resources effectively.

The caucus further claims that the situation is exacerbated by the bank’s Deputy Managing Director, who was also a politically active individual who previously contested the Fomena Member of Parliament seat.

On Wednesday, while addressing Journalists in Accra, the Minority Leader, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, expressed his reservations about such a development.

He said President Akufo-Addo is destroying the governance of our country.

“In the sense that even banks, a typical example like the NIB has been turned into a hub where they harbour foot soldiers of the party. You have a bank that is struggling, a bank that is almost collapsed, a bank that we know that the governance structure regime is extremely poor but we all want to nurture the bank because obviously it is a state bank,” he added.

Prove Critics Wrong

Reacting to this development, A Governance Analyst and a lecturer at the Central University, Dr. Benjamin Otchere-Ankrah in an interview with Peace FM news challenged the newly appointed Managing Director of National Investment Bank (NIB), Mr. Tweneboah Kodua Fokuo  to see his appointment as a task to work and prove his critics wrong.

Dr.  Otchere-Ankrah said in as much as he is a politician vying to be voted for on a ticket of the NPP in Manso Nkwanta, he should put his political affiliation behind and work for the sustenance of the bank from its current distress position.

Dr Ankrah indicated that every individual is a ‘walking politician’ who belongs to a political party, “but if we allow professionalism to thrive in our dealings and works, we will be able to undertake any assignment given, irrespective of one’s affiliations.”

Nonetheless a Banking Consultant Dr. Richmond Atuahene says calls for the removal of Tweneboah Kodua Fokuo as Managing Director of the National Investment Bank are without any basis.

Calls for Fokuo’s removal unjustified

Dr. Richmond Atuahene says once the person in question has met all the criteria set to head a bank by the Bank of Ghana, the call for his removal is not justified.

Dr Richard Atuahene believed that, if the concern raised by the minority group is about time commitment, then they have no reason to protest for his removal.

Speaking with Peace FM News, he explained that the President of Ghana, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Ado has never breached any constitution or statutory for appointing Mr. Fokuo as the new MD since he followed all the norms before the appointment.

He said their concern is unjustified since there is no law against a political figure holding a public office when he qualifies.

Also the Director-General of the State Interest and Governance Authority (SIGA), John Boadu, stated that the concern of the Minority in parliament about the recent appointment of Tweneboah Kodua Fokuo as the Managing Director of the National Investment Bank (NIB) is without basis.

But the Director-General of SIGA, John Boadu argues that if Mr Fokuo lacked the qualifications to save the bank from collapse, it would have been a matter of concern.

NIB Managing Director Clears Air Over Role As Parliamentary Candidate

Tweneboa Kodua Fokuo, the newly appointed Managing Director (MD) of the National Investment Bank (NIB), has dismissed concerns over his dual role as the New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate for the Manso Nkwanta Constituency in the Ashanti Region.

Fokuo’s appointment has sparked controversy and criticism, particularly from the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), who questions the Bank of Ghana’s decision to approve a Parliamentary Candidate as the Chief Executive (CEO) of a struggling state bank during an election year.

However, in an interview on Joy FM on Monday, Kodua Fokuo emphasized his commitment to his work at NIB, stating that he has never left the office for party work unless it was his leisure time.