GCB Bank Marks 70th Anniversary Nationwide In Modest Style

• SERVING THE PEOPLE WITH HONESTY, INTEGRITY AND HUMILITY

• CUSTOMERS JOIN GCB STAFF TO CELEBRATE

• THE MOMENTOUS OCCASION AND GLORIFY GOD

• AN EXCLUSIVE REPORT BY KAFUI AMEH (A Loyal GCB Customer Since 1973)

‘’ The Joy of the Lord is our strength’’ (Nehemiah 8:10)

‘’ Jesus said unto him, “Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.” (Mark 5:19-20).

It was yet another miracle! Totally unexpected and completely unforeseen by me and many people. But as pointed out to me the other day by the renowned Rev. Prof. A.S Ayettey, author of ‘’Can you Hear the Angels Sing?”, “The Graces of God”, and other amazing soul-nourishing books, nothing happens by chance without God having foreknowledge of it, or without him having a hand in it.

“There are no Coincidences with God’’, affirms Jonathan Cahn, another experienced man of God and prolific Christian author.

And so it came to pass that on Friday 19th May 2023, having woken up somehow in a good mood, I decided to wear my well-tailored and well ironed white ‘’Agbada” and blueish trousers, symbolizing victory and peace in my mind while going to collect my few cedis of monthly stipend as a prematurely retired pensioner of World Vision Ghana and three-time stroke survivor.

My destination was the Legon Branch of Ghana Commercial Bank(GCB) near the University of Ghana. I got to the Bank around 9:30 am, more than one-hour after they had opened for the day’s business operations.

I therefore had to join a queue which is normally formed on the benches awaiting my turn to be served. Suddenly, something happened and the atmosphere changes. I saw a number of pretty young ladies all smartly dressed in white attire beckoning customers towards a spot near the entrance where a table had just been set up. We were made to surround the table on which laid a beautifully adorned customized Cake with the inscription ‘’GCB 70th Anniversary.’’ We were then requested to join hands with the staff in cutting the Anniversary Cake. A bottle of champagne was popped open amidst the singing of the popular birthday song, ‘’ Happy Birthday to You’’.

Some of the Staff went around sharing slices of the GCB 70th Anniversary Cake to the customers while others served the anniversary champagne with sparkling smiles. Wow! What a pleasant surprise! It was all so spontaneous and so swift. It was all over in less than 15 minutes, with customers resuming their positions, while the staff of the Bank also continued with their normal work.

What happened at the Legon Branch of GCB Bank on May 19th was a classic display of good customer relations and Customer Service well-coordinated and strategically choreographed which one hopes would be extended to all areas of the Bank’s operations and from which other organizations may learn going into the future.

KNOWING THE REAL BRAND NAME

I must confess I didn’t know that GCB had ceased to be called Ghana Commercial Bank until I was in the process of verifying some information for this article. Since brand names are of great importance and significance, what this means is that there is still some more work to be done by GCB Bank in the area of public education for the sake of brand name recognition in the midst of stiff market competition.

It was during a brief chat with me at her office that Mrs. Karen Dwomoh, the affable Branch Manager of Legon GCB Bank Limited, made me aware that the bank is now simply known as GCB Bank. This was confirmed to me by a closer look at my cheque book, which revealed that on the cover and on all the leaflets was clearly written GCB Bank Limited, with the mighty eagle dominating the bank’s logo.

The GCB Bank has, without doubt, played a significant role in the socio-economic development of Ghana, introducing various innovative schemes from time to time in the areas of Agriculture, Industry, Healthcare, Education and other social interventions.

One such scheme was the introduction of the once famous Akuafo Cheque System, introduced to facilitate payment to farmers, though it had some of its own challenges.

The Bank’s leadership could therefore not have chosen a better theme to demonstrate its accomplishments over the years than what was so beautifully captured and depicted on the Anniversary Cake, viz, ‘’ GCB 70TH Anniversary: Seventy (70) Years of Providing Unrivaled Financial Solutions towards the Socio-Economic Development of Ghana.”

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!

Since the GCB Bank caters for a wide variety of customers with different needs, different goals and expectations, as well as different experiences, I cannot pretend to speak for the totality of the bank’s clientele. Some commendations and criticisms there certainly will be. But speaking for myself, based on my association with GCB for the past 50 years, I wish to once again extend my appreciation and sincere congratulations to the hard working Operations Manager, Mrs. Karen Dwomoh who has been taking charge of affairs at the Legon Branch of GCB in the absence of a substantive Branch Manager, the current Managing Director, Mr. Kofi Adomakoh and all staff including Beatrice Osei, plus all clients of GCB nationwide, on the momentous occasion of the 70th Anniversary of the Bank.

The GCB Bank has indeed passed through many competent hands, including the well known Dr. Kwabena Duffuor, a former Governor of the Bank of Ghana who later became Minister for Finance.

According to Bernard Harry Duose, CEO of IMESCO Associates and a Tax Revenue Consultant who graduated from the University of Ghana, Legon, in 1982, one of his main lecturers in the Economics Department which was then headed by Mr. Abban, was Dr. Kwabena Duffuor.

“As Class Prefect for the Economics Class in those days, I sometimes had to chase Dr. Duffuor to his Office at GCB to come and lecture us because he was then a part-time lecturer like many other professionals who preferred to work full time elsewhere because the salary of university lecturers and other staff was comparatively very low”, Bernard said.

Bernard described Dr. Duffuor as a brilliant Economist who was at the time serving as Head of the Research Department at GCB located in the Ringway Estates, and was writing several Memos to the then sitting President, Dr. Hilla Limann, suggesting ways of improving the country’s economy.

“He was appointed Minister of Finance by President John Atta Mills and also served in the same capacity under President John Dramani Mahatma until he was replaced by Mahama when he (Mahama) became the substantive President following his 2012 election victory”, said Bernard.

The experience of May 19 also tells me that the sweat and toil of the pioneers such as Kafui Asem, Mrs. Hellen Lokko, Mr. Bray, Mr. Adu Mantey and others over the years in building a good image and reputation for GCB as ‘’ The People’s Bank ‘’ has not been in vain.

Despite all the challenges and vicissitudes of life, it’s been a worthwhile and fruitful journey of partnership, understanding, cooperation and collaboration with Ghana’s leading indigenous bank.

ARTICLE WRITTEN BY KAFUI AMEH