Sammy Gyamfi mocks Goldbod detractors over ‘imaginary losses’ claims

Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Goldbod, Sammy Gyamfi, has dismissed claims of losses at the state gold trading firm, describing them as “imaginary” and politically driven.

In a social media statement on Saturday, Mr Gyamfi accused critics of what he called a desperate attempt to undermine both Goldbod and the Mahama administration, insisting the company is operating profitably.

“In their desperation to see the transformational GoldBod and the Mahama government fail, the doom wishers have created ‘by force’ imaginary losses and are aggressively imposing the same on the surplus-making GoldBod,” he wrote, adding, “How ridiculous.”

Mr Gyamfi argued that the criticisms ignore the historical context and costs associated with the Domestic Gold Purchase Programme (DGPP), a policy previously championed by some of the same critics.

“They have soon forgotten the objects, policy-design and cost associated with the DGPP they once touted, albeit, with very little to show for,” he said.

According to him, the DGPP inherently came with costs to the Bank of Ghana, a reality that was understood and justified at the time through a broader economic assessment.

“They have forgotten that the policy choice of the DGPP has always come with an intrinsic cost to the central bank,” Mr Gyamfi stated. “They have forgotten that the policy justification for the DGPP despite its associated cost, lies in a holistic analysis of ‘cost verses economic benefits’.”

Turning his attention to the central bank, the Goldbod CEO criticised what he described as selective outrage directed at the current leadership of the Bank of Ghana.

“Today, the doom wishers are castigating the very administration of the BoG that has delivered the most sterling economic record in Ghana’s recent history,” he wrote, noting that the bank had fulfilled its “primary constitutional mandate of price stability”.

Mr Gyamfi claimed the current administration had achieved in one year what critics failed to deliver “in eight years,” and said further engagement on the matter would expose weaknesses in the arguments being advanced.

“Well, their ‘jandam’ will collapse like a heap of sand when we make the time to engage the issues after the Yuletide,” he added.

He also took a lighter tone, mocking his opponents.
He said: “I think I look amazing in the golden suit prepared for me by the doom wishers.”

Mr Gyamfi pointed to currency market data to buttress his confidence, noting that “the interbank dollar rate for today stands at GHS11.1,” before wishing Ghanaians a peaceful holiday season.

The Bank of Ghana (BoG) had said that reports that it made losses due to GoldBod operations are speculative.

The IMF had flagged the reported losses as a potential downside risk to Ghana’s broader macroeconomic stabilisation efforts, attributing them to transactions involving artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) dore gold, as well as what it described as “GoldBod off-taker fees”.

Critics have pounced on the report to suggest that the Goldbod might not be as profitable as advertised.