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‘I Will Never Forgive Akufo-Addo and Ofori-Atta’ — Former Cal Bank CEO

Former Chief Executive Officer of Cal Bank, Frank Adu Jnr

Former Chief Executive Officer of Cal Bank, Frank Adu Jnr, has launched a scathing attack on former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, vowing never to forgive them for the financial losses he incurred during Ghana’s controversial Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).

Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express on Monday, June 30, the respected banker revealed he lost significant investments in Eurobonds and criticised what he described as the government’s “morally indefensible” decision to include pensioners in the debt restructuring exercise.

“I lost money,” he stated. “Pensioners picketed, and the former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, came to picket with us. I didn’t go to picket, but my colleagues did. Some worked on the technical details behind the scenes, and those who were vociferous were out there—but I lost money in the Eurobond.”

He described the inclusion of pensioners in the DDEP as not just bad economics but a deep moral failure.

“Why would you do that? Why would you go after pensioners’ money? It’s one thing that people can never forgive Akufo-Addo and Ken Ofori-Atta for,” he fumed.

When asked directly by host Evans Mensah if he had personally forgiven the two leaders, Mr Adu’s response was emphatic:

“No, I will not, because I saw them live large. And so why do you want to live large at the expense of my pension? It’s something that should not be trivialised at all, to have a Cabinet meeting and decide that in solving the country’s debt problems we would include pensioners—that’s dark.”

Despite his personal ties with the former Finance Minister—including what he described as “family” closeness—Adu Jnr did not mince words in assessing Ofori-Atta’s stewardship of the economy.

“We are kind of family with Ofori-Atta. On my first trip to the US, I stayed with Ken. We slept in the same bed. So that’s the relationship,” he shared.

But when asked to rate Ofori-Atta’s performance, his verdict was blunt:

“Disaster. Disastrous. Look, if it wasn’t disastrous, between him and the president, the people of Ghana wouldn’t have voted the way they voted in 2024. It’s not me saying it — the verdict is captured in the election results. It’s as simple as that. You do not run the economy where almost everybody is suffering and expect that the people will not object. And that’s what the voters of this country did last year.”

Adu Jnr reflected on the initial optimism that greeted Ofori-Atta’s appointment in 2017, noting that he, like many others, expected the minister’s international experience to deliver sound economic leadership.

“I don’t know what happened. I remember when he was appointed, I sent him a message congratulating him and urging him to do the best he could for this country and leave a legacy. And that’s what we all expected. We were all very hopeful. But subsequent events have betrayed that hope.”

Ghana’s domestic debt exchange programme, launched in late 2022 as part of a broader restructuring plan, sparked public uproar — particularly after the government initially sought to include pension funds, individual bondholders, and vulnerable groups. The pushback led to street protests and picketing by pensioners, including high-profile figures like former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo.

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