Minority MPs and Bryan Acheampong are fighting theBuffer Stock Company
Some lawmakers were caught in a heated discussion with Agriculture Minister Bryan Acheampong at the headquarters of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) on Friday.
A team of junior managementvisited the company to find out what happened following a protest by some angry food suppliers who besieged the company office for non-payment of school supplies. Members include minority leader Cassiel Ato Forson, his deputy Armah Kofi Buah, North Tongu MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Juaboso MP Kwabena Mintah Akandoh and Felix Ofosu Kwakye, and former deputy director of communications under the NDC in the administration ofJohn Dramani Mahama , andothers. .
As the group sought answers from the NAFCOrepresentative at the Housepress office, Agriculture Minister Bryan Acheampong intervened. Mr. Acheampong asked Cassiel Ato Forson; “You used to be the Deputy Minister of Finance. What do you know about these payments? »
Buffer business became a center of corruption, must be investigated - Nortsu-Kotoe supports food suppliers who complain.
He further accused the youthsof engaging in what he described as unethical hoarding. "This unusual behavior should not be accepted and encouraged," he told the group.
But NDC lawmakers will have none of that. This led to aheated discussion between Mr Acheampong and other MPs.
Mintah Akandoh half-heartedly replied; "Are you angry because we are finding solutions to challenges? If you would have solved it [those challenges], we wouldn't be here.
"You should be the last person to get angry," Akandoh added. Meanwhile, the National Food Suppliers Association says it cannot trust the National Food Buffer Stock Company's negotiation process to resolve its debt crisis.
The group has been picketing the premises of Buffer Joint Stock Company for the past 72 hours, demanding payment of about GHȼ270 million cedis. The National Buffer Stock Company said in a statement Thursday that it is planning an emergency meeting to approve the payment plan.
But food suppliers say they will not participate in this plan because all the previous arrangements have failed. Thesuppliers spent a few nights inthe company insisting on their claims for the payment of the equipment they made between 2021 and 2022.
A minority of MPs during the parliament demanded that the ministers responsible for agriculture, finance and education be called to answer questions about the supplier's debt. As a result, the Speaker of the Parliament, Alban Bagbin,has asked the Ministers of Education, Finance and Agriculture to appear before the Parliament next week.
According to the President, the three ministers will explain to parliament the challenges they face in the payment of suppliers. He said that when the challenges are known, the Chamber can help them to solve them.
“So I agree that the business committee should organize the arrival of the three ministers in front of the house. The three ministers are finance, food and agriculture and education to tell us what the challenge is.
"We will be able to help the leaders to solve these problems. That is why we have created a committee that appears.