Any investment in Komenda Sugar Factory would be waste of resources – Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu

Former Majority Leader and Member of Parliament for Suame, Hon Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu has said any investment by the state into the Komenda sugar factory would be a prodigal waste of resources.

According to the Suame MP, the factory’s operational challenges are dire, citing the significant loss of land initially allocated for the project.

“When the Komenda sugar factory was operational, about 20% of lands at the site is gone, the chiefs have taken over, leaving only about 75%”, he explained.

Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu stated that the out-growers who previously supplied the factory have converted their lands into palm plantations reducing the available land area even further.

“When the factory came to a standstill, all the out-growers converted their lands into palm plantations, so the small land left cannot feed the factory”.

Speaking in an interview with Kojo Marfo on AbusuaNkommo at ABUSUA965FM, Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu stated that the factory’s reliance on irrigation water from River Pra poses significant challenges due to the devastating effects of illegal mining on the water bodies.

“If you go anywhere, they grow sugarcane, you will need irrigation water to feed the farms. When the factory was operational, they drew irrigation water from River Pra along the Cape Coast to Takoradi road.

“What water are we going to use for this work? The water has been polluted by illegal mining. Are we going to make the water clean before we use it?”, he asked.

Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu emphasized that the water pollution caused by galamsey would require purification before use, adding substantial costs to the project.

He insisted “because of galamsey all the water bodies have been destroyed, and you need to purify it.

“There’s nowhere in the world where irrigation water is purified before you. Even if you do that, it will bring another cost”, he stressed.

He further expressed grave concerns about the contamination of the Pra River, the factory’s water source due to illegal mining activities.

“The most dangerous thing is that all fishes in the Pra River are all dead because of poisonous chemicals in the river.

“Even if you are able to purify the water at that huge cost for irrigation, the poisons which have killed the fishes are still in the water and will feed into the sugarcane”, Hon Osei Kyei Mensah stressed.

He also noted that the existence of the Sugar Factory poses a significant threat to public health as the sugar produced would likely be deemed unwholesome by the Food and Drugs Authority.

“When you’re done producing, the Food and Drugs Authority will come and tell you the sugar is not wholesome. Does it make sense to go ahead with this?”.

Hon Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu clarified that his comments represent his personal opinion and not the stance of the government stating “I am not speaking for the government, but for myself”.

The former Majority Leader asserted that this is not the first time he has expressed skepticism about the project.

He recalled that during the factory’s inception under the NDC administration, he had warned that it would not be successful.

Meanwhile, the Minister for Trade and Industry, KT Hammond has announced that an India-based firm set to take over the Komenda Sugar Factory on a lease will pay the government at least $ 1 million annually as rent.