Cocobod urged to check unauthorised distribution of used sacks

Accra, June 9, GNA - Some top officials of the Cocoa Marketing Board (CMC) are alleged to have been engaged in the unauthorised sale and distribution of used cocoa sacks for their personal gains, it has been reported.

A source close to the company told the GNA that the practice had become a fertile ground for corruption among some officials of the company and needed to be checked before it gets out of hand and undermine the integrity of the industry. It called on management of the Ghana Cocoa Board to take control and ensure that the disposal of used sacks after bulk shipment of cocoa beans does not become an avenue for corruption. CMC is a subsidiary of COCOBOD with a core duty of marketing and shipping Ghana's cocoa beans abroad. As part of its efforts to enhance efficiency of the shipment process, the company also undertakes bulk shipment of the beans in special containers without the sacks in which the beans were bagged to the port.

"It is the sharing of these used sacks that have become a lucrative business for a few officials", the source alleged.