A financial expert, Dr. Richmond Atuahene has urged President John Mahama to establish a special investigative committee to thoroughly probe how an estimated $42 billion reportedly left Ghana’s financial system without sufficient scrutiny from the country’s banking sector.
His call comes in response to recent revelations by President Mahama that over the past four years, around $42 billion exited Ghana through payments for imports that never arrived, raising suspicions of large-scale financial irregularities and possible money laundering.
In an interview with newsyegh.com, Dr. Atuahene stated that such a huge outflow of funds exposes serious weaknesses in the nation’s financial oversight framework. He questioned how banks, the Bank of Ghana, and other relevant agencies failed to detect or prevent these transactions, given the clear requirements under the Anti–Money Laundering Act of 2008. According to him, banks were legally mandated to implement stronger internal controls, compliance programs, and transaction monitoring systems to prevent the misuse of the financial system.
Dr. Atuahene described the development as an example of complete negligence and poor enforcement of existing laws. He emphasized that financial institutions must be held accountable for lapses in verifying the authenticity of import payments and ensuring that foreign currency transfers are properly justified. He further recommended that the proposed committee include representatives from the Bank of Ghana the Financial Intelligence Centre, and independent financial auditors to guarantee transparency.
The expert indicated that the government must act swiftly to restore confidence in the banking system, tighten supervisory mechanisms, and ensure that Ghana’s financial institutions uphold the highest standards of integrity to prevent future capital flight.
