The Pensioner Bond Holders Forum is resisting attempts by the government, to include them in the next round of the Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP).
The group which was initially excluded from the debt restructuring earlier this year is demanding their removal from the government’s reopened DDEP.
Addressing journalists in Accra on Monday, September 18, 2023, the Convener of the Pensioner Bondholders Forum, Dr. Adu Anane Antwi called on the government to abort any plans include them in the DDEP to avert any delays in the payment of the principals and coupons which are due.
“’Category B Holders’ who did not tender their bonds, were on the 16th of February 2023 exempted from the DDEP. Effectively, natural persons 59 years old or older as of 1st January 2023 who did not tender their bonds, and were subsequently exempted from the DDEP, are not part of persons who could not participate in the DDEP. Such persons, therefore, cannot be part of an invitation to give holders who could not participate in the DDEP an opportunity to tender.”
The government, on September 13, opened fresh invitations to E.S.L.A. Plc and Daakye Trust Plc bondholders to trade their holdings for a new package under the domestic debt exchange programme.
The press release from the Ministry of Finance urged holders of the domestic notes and bonds to actively and voluntarily accept the invitation and participate.
But the Pensioner Bondholders have already declared their intention not to be part of the government’s fresh Domestic Debt Exchange Programme (DDEP) for ESLA and Daakye Bondholders.
The group has thus presented a petition to the Finance Ministry over the matter.
“We have delivered a letter to the Minister of Finance today – Monday, advising that “Category B Holders” should be removed from the DDEP Reopening invitation. The menace of the inclusion of “Category B Holders” in the invitation is that pensioners will not receive their coupons and principals due during the offer period, and until the settlement date.”
“This is so, as the Government will have to wait till settlement date to be able to determine holders who did not tender their bonds, before paying them their coupons and principals that became due during the offer period”, Dr. Anane Antwi added.