Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson has indicated that government currently lacks the financial capacity to compensate customers whose funds remain locked up in collapsed financial institutions, sparking renewed frustration among affected investors.

Speaking on the issue on JoyNews' PM Express, Dr. Forson questioned whether the state should continue assuming responsibility for liabilities arising from privately managed financial institutions.

“The money must come from somewhere. Tell me, am I going to stop paying for school feeding? Am I going to stop paying capitation grant? Because the money must come from somewhere. Tell me, what am I cutting to pay the person who gave his investment to a private person to mismanage?

So I have fundamental issues with that. I think government has no business going into that and taking those responsibilities to pay. In fact, we do not even have the money to do that," he stated.

His comments come despite campaign assurances made by President John Dramani Mahama ahead of the 2024 general elections that an NDC administration would reimburse victims of the financial sector clean-up within its first year in office.

At the time, Mahama pledged that all locked-up funds belonging to customers of collapsed institutions would be paid.

However, 16 months into the administration, many affected customers say they have yet to see any clear roadmap toward compensation.

The remarks by the Finance Minister have drawn criticism from some aggrieved customers, particularly victims linked to collapsed fund management firms such as Gold Coast Fund Management.

Convener of the Aggrieved Customers of Gold Coast Fund Management, Charles Nyame, accused government of backtracking on promises made during the election campaign.

According to him, customers relied on the President’s commitment and now feel abandoned following the Finance Minister’s remarks.