The Member of Parliament for Offinso North, Dr Fred Kyie Asamoah, has strongly condemned government over its decision to reduce the producer price of cocoa, describing the move as a betrayal of farmers who voted for the ruling administration based on campaign promises.
The condemnation came during a Minority caucus tour of cocoa growing communities in the Ashanti Region, where lawmakers engaged directly with farmers on the ground realities and impact of the price reduction.
Dr Kyie Asamoah argued that government could have created a special support fund for farmers instead of cutting producer prices at such a critical time.
Speaking as a son of a cocoa farmer himself and a beneficiary of the Cocoa scholarship, Dr. Kyei Asamoah said it would be deeply unfair to treat cocoa farmers in this manner, particularly given that the government earned an estimated GH₵40 billion from cocoa sales. He argued that a portion of those proceeds should have been used to settle the GH₵11 billion debt owed to farmers rather than justify a price reduction.
“If government could not increase the price to what was promised, it should at least have kept it at GH₵3,100 where it picked the price from,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Member of Parliament for Effiduase/Asokore, Nana Ayew Afriye, echoed the criticism and pledged the Minority’s full support for cocoa farmers, outlining a step-by-step plan of action to hold the government accountable.
He called on President John Mahama to use the same borrowing mechanisms employed to procure presidential aircraft to instead source funds to support cocoa farmers.
Hon. Ayew Afriye said the Minority’s campaign would proceed in three stages, first pushing for the settlement of debts owed to farmers, then demanding a restoration of prices to the GH₵3,100 level left by the previous NPP government, and finally holding the president to his campaign pledge of GH₵6,000 per bag.
“We want him to do that now and will not wait for the next election,” he warned.