The National Food Suppliers Association (NFSA), have accused the Minister for Education, Hon. Osei Adutwum and the Chief Executive Officer for National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), Alhaji Hanan Abdul-Wahab for deliberately refusing to pay them of two years locked up monies as a result of food items supplied to the various schools in the country.
“Buffer Stock CEO and Minister for Education seems to be insensitive to our plight. When we supply, we do so at our own cost. The food that we sent to the various schools are not as if Buffer Stock has a Centralized warehouses where we go to supply those foods upon which they also go to distribute to the various schools. We go to the various schools to supply at our own cost of transportation and cost of loading and offloading. All those cost are on us. So if after two years those monies are still locked up with government. What is the government doing if for two years we have not been able to get our money for the supply we have done, it means the free SHS is not a success story “.
The Association disclosed this in an interview when they picketed at the National Food Buffer Stock Company Headquarters yesterday to demand for their two years unpaid supply.
According to the angry picketers, until a total amount of 270 Million paid to them by government through the CEO of Buffer Stocks, they would continue to sleep there.
Addressing the media, Mr. Kwaku Amedume, Spokesperson for National Food Supplies Association narrated that, the only crime committed by members of the Association has to do with undertaking the supply of foodstuff to the various schools to support the free SHS policy of government.
Government he indicated, is owing members the supply done since 2021 till date, running to 270 Ghana Cedis.
“We have done everything possible to get our monies paid to us but has not yielded any possible results”.
The picketing at the Buffer Stock Headquarters he disclosed, was scheduled for 13th of last month but, did not come on due to some interventions which they saw was necessarily for them to call off the picketing with the hope that authorities are going to pay them.
He revealed that, after the authorities intervention which made them stopped the picketing, nobody have told them anything as to where and how their monies are going to be paid.
“The two weeks that we were promised that our monies are going to be ready, the two
weeks is gone and we have not heard anything from the government “.
Mr. Amedume further hinted that, most of the food supply by members were done through loans collected from the banks but now, can no longer continue with the supply because the financial institutions are on their neck to the extent that, some used their properties as collateral to secure the loans.
“The Minister for Education told us that, he has released 90% of our monies to the Buffer Stock so, they don’t owe us”.
He voiced out that, until government paid their monies to them, they would continue to remain at the premises of Buffer Stock with all members across the 16 region of Ghana.
“We have written to the office of the President, written to the Minister for Education and National Buffer Stock but, nothing has come out and no efforts seems to be made for the monies to be paid to our members. That is why we have gathered this morning. We are elderly people, very responsible people. All that we want is our monies. We are not asking too much. Surprisingly,
Government is not giving us the money with interest. Government is only going to pay us based on the face value of the budget we presented to Buffer Stock. So why are they not given our monies for two years now. We want our monies and we want it now”.
The Creditors he stated, are chasing them from their house and therefore, feel comfortable to sleep at the Buffer Stock saying, their actions would affect the free SHS if government did not pay them.
He averred that, the success of free SHS depends on the prompt supply of food items to the various schools on time. “The free SHS success doesn’t depends on the students alone. The success of the free SHS also depends on the prompt payment of we the suppliers because, if they failed to pay us on time, how do we continue to supply”.
According to Mr. Amedume, his checks indicate that Government spent more than 800 Ghana Cedis on each student for the free SHS policy. “So my question is, monies that have been budgeted for 2021-2022 till date which have not been paid, how will those monies disbursed and who end this monies for the supply they have not done because, we did the supply and those expenditures were budgeted for and costed for which reasons we were asked to supply. Where is the money. That is what we are asking for. Our businesses are dwindling, our reputations are dwindling and we can no longer seat in our homes. We can no longer do business anymore”.
Some of their members he lamented, are now suffering from stroke including all manner of emotional trauma and rejection”. We want our monies settled and we want it now”.
