Jibril Abdul Mumuni
Accra, May 20, GNA – Organised Labour (Ghana) has asked the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) to cancel the proposed sale of its stakes in six hotels.
The union made the call at a press briefing addressed by the Secretary General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Dr. Yaw Baah.
He called on the minister responsible for pensions to direct the Board of Trustees of SSNIT to cancel the process immediately.
He said the union representatives on the Board of Trustees of SSNIT informed the leadership of the union that they had collectively raised objections to the process.
“SSNIT’s interests in six hotels should not be packaged and sold as if all the hotels were in the same financial situation. The original proposal for the sale of SSNIT’s interests in six hotels has now been reduced to four. We hold the view that this renders the whole process null and void.
The proposed payment terms varied from the original Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) based on the recommendation of the transaction advisor,” he said.
Dr. Baah also said the union had a challenge that state assets would be sold to a Minister of State.
The union was reacting to an allegation leveled against Trust that it was selling its stakes in six hotels to a company owned by the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr. Bryan Acheampong.
The Trust, in a press statement, indicated that Rock City Hotel had submitted the strongest technical and financial proposal amongst other companies that expressed interest.
However, Dr. Baah accused the trust of not conducting proper due diligence in its quest to sell its stakes to the Rock City Hotel.
“From all indications, it appears the process is going on, and in fact, they are even speeding it, and we do not think it is right. We do not think the regulations that guide the sale of state assets were followed. We do not think that the necessary due diligence was conducted. We cannot imagine that state property will be sold to a minister of state,“ he said.
He advised the minister in charge of pensions to act proactively to avert the sale; otherwise, the union would be forced to act.
GNA