Pay us fully or we resume picketing – Food Suppliers tell government

The National Food Suppliers Association has asked the government to honour its assurance of settling their debts else they will resume picketing at the premises of the National Food Buffer Stock Company.

The group has given the government up to Thursday, July 20, to pay the debts it owes them.

The spokesperson for the group, Koku Amedume, said there have been hints that the government was going to pay the food suppliers by the end of the week.

However, the information he has gathered reveals that the payment will not be the full amount owed.

Speaking at a press conference in Accra, he said: “The Agric Minister, Bryan Acheampong came to tell us there were plans to pay us today, so we summoned all our members to come for their cheques only for the Buffer Stock CEO to tell us that they have not received any money to that effect and further said that he will not deal with an association, and we find that comment to be unfortunate because the people he wants to deal with individually are the same people in the association.”

Koku Amedume explained that the reason the group will not accept part payments is the longevity of the debt.

“All we are asking them to do is to pay people who have supplied foodstuffs to Buffer Stock in the past two years whose interests have accumulated and are being chased by creditors but because of the CEO’s comments, we proceeded to the Agric Minister who said the cheque was issued today and expected to be ready by Thursday but the hint we are getting is that we are not going to get full payment.

“We have made the point clear that we will not accept half payment of our monies because the money is long overdue and the interest on those monies is accumulating and creditors are on our necks,” he added.

SSD/NOQ

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