'REPAY LOANS PROPTLY' (PAGE 61, OCT 25, 2010)

THE Chairman of the board of directors of the Wa Co-operative Credit Union (WACCU), Mr Moses Donneyong, has called on members of the union who took loans to repay promptly.
That, he said, would forestall the situation where the board would resort to legal action to recover the loans.
“Let me caution that loan delinquency is growing to alarming heights so members who take loans are encouraged to do well to settle their indebtedness, ” he added.
Mr Donneyong was addressing the annual general meeting of the union at Wa in the Upper West region.
He said total savings by members of the union by June last year was GH¢ 1,868,472.74 and this had increased to GH¢2,635.74.
Shares within the same period rose from GH¢ 192,910.20 to GH¢ 206, 335.60 while membership stood at 6,851.
Mr Donneyong said with the influx of new banks and financial institutions into the Wa municipality there was the urgent need to strengthen the capital base of the union and urged members to buy more shares to enable them to withstand the competition posed by the banks.
He said the current share per member which was GH¢20.00 was too low and suggested that it be increased to GH¢ 50.00.
He said the board had taken pragmatic measures to ensure the viability of the union and that more qualified people with the requisite backgrounds were being recruited while building the capacity of others.
“An internal control system has been put in place in order to prevent possible manipulation, check any lapses and close all loopholes to avoid or prevent malfeasance, “ he said
Mr Donneyong said due to the union’s migration from the manual ledger cards to a computerised system the board considered the financial position of the union before investing further in long term capital projects hence the suspension of the new office complex project of the union.
He assured members of the continuous support, co-operation and assistance from the board of directors.
For his part, the regional manager of the Department of Co-operatives, Mr Seidu Mahama, advised the board to adopt prudent financial policies to improve the income of the union.
He appealed to members of the union to protect the interest of the union in order to avoid liquidation.