Organised Labour will convene an emergency meeting today to decide their next steps following the National Pensions Regulatory Commission’s (NPRA) approval of the sale of SSNIT shares in six hotels.
On June 28, the NPRA instructed SSNIT to pause its negotiations with Rock City regarding the sale of four hotels for further evaluation and engagement. However, during a session in Parliament on Thursday, July 11, Pensions Minister Ignatius Baffour Awuah clarified that all necessary procedures had been followed.
“Yes, it is true that NPRA came up with a directive, but I would appreciate it if my brother, my colleague, really read the directive from NPRA. It said it needed to be furnished with all information relating to the sale of the hotels, which SSNIT has since done,” Awuah explained. He added, “So, it wasn’t like a direct something that SSNIT should not go ahead to do anything, but then, SSNIT can only go ahead when NPRA, which is the regulator within the field, had actually certified that they have seen all the documentation and the processes, and they think that we are good to go.”
Awuah further justified the decision to sell SSNIT’s 60 percent share in the hotels, stating that “SSNIT considered only the sale of shares for its hotel investment portfolio as a strategic decision after multiple attempts at restructuring proved insufficient.” He noted that “70-60% of its shares are deemed the most viable solution to prevent further depletion of resources and to bring in private participation.”
He also addressed concerns about the profitability of the investments, saying, “Is it a good business activity? Yes, I want to believe my colleague is listening to me fully, well because I answered by saying that some of the investments are either making low returns or making losses. So it is not in all cases that we are making losses, but even for those that are making profits, the returns are low.”
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