The Concerned NPP Communicators, a group with affiliations to the governing New Patriotic Party has described as untrue claims by the Member of Parliament for Asunafo South that the country imports cassava from China.
According to the group, the claims by the Ranking Member of the Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Committee of Parliament are untrue and fueled by malice and partisanship.
The group stated in a release that the country does not import cassava from China and urged Ghanaians to ignore what it terms to be propaganda from Eric Opoku
Whiles talking up the impact of the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative on the economy, the group said food production in the country has witnessed a meteoric rise owing to the policies implemented by the Ministry of Food and Agric.
Read the full statement below
Ghana does not import Cassava from China, Hon. Eric Opoku should stop the lies
By: Concerned NPP Communicators
There is this outrageous and palpable misinformation spreading through both social and traditional media that, Ghana, our naturally endowed rich land imports cassava from China.
It is regrettable to note that, this outrageous piece of disturbing falsehood is been engineered and spread by no mere a person than the Member of Parliament (MP) for Asunafo South constituency who also doubles as the Ranking Member of Food, Agriculture, and Cocoa Affairs Committee of Parliament, Hon. Eric Opoku.
According to this NDC Member of Parliament, since 2019, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has imported cassava from China to augment Ghana's depleting cassava stock. He made this disparaging claim on Accra FM's morning show, "Ghana Yensom".
This claim by Hon. Eric Opoku confirms how empty and ignorant he is on matters of food production, consumption and importation in this country.
We would wish to use this opportunity to cure the mischief of this "Dishonourable" Member of Parliament against the Ministry that is currently holding the economic pillars of this country.
First of all, Ghana does not import cassava from China. As a matter of fact, Ghana is a net exporter of cassava products. For instance, in 2019 alone, total production of cassava in Ghana was 19.4 million metric tonnes. In the same year Ghana exported GHc 13.7 million of processed cassava products including tapioca, flour, gari, etc.
Besides, the Plant Protection and Regulatory Services Directorates of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, which is the agency responsible for issuing permit for the importation of agriculture produce, did not issue any permit for the importation of raw cassava into Ghana. So it can never be true that Ghana imported raw cassava from China in 2019.
We are therefore daring Hon. Eric Opoku to avail to us the source of information for his bogus claim that Ghana has been importing cassava from China since 2019.
It is also worthy to note that, some of the derivatives of cassava used for some specific industrial purposes such as manufacturing of drugs, textiles, among others, are all not manufactured locally and sometimes manufactured, but not in very large quantities to meet all the industrial needs of the Country, and therefore have to be imported. But this, can never be termed as importation of raw cassava into Ghana.
A simple scenario to help cure the ignorance of Hon. Eric Opoku and his NDC Propagandists is the importation of some cocoa products into this country. We import several cocoa products, but it would be very childish if not insane for anybody to claim that Ghana imports cocoa just because we import cocoa products.
In conclusion, it could be seen that, in whichever way you would look at it, it can never be said that Ghana imports cassava.
It is therefore, out of hatred and a desperate attempt to discredit Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto and this government's enviable record in Agriculture, that a supposed Ranking Member of Food and Agriculture Committee of Parliament would peddle such infantile lies.
We wish to inform the public that, Ghana does not import cassava, and therefore, should disregard the claims of Hon. Eric Opoku.
............Signed...............
Concerned NPP Communicators
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