Joseph Boahen Aidoo, the chief executive officer of the Ghana COCOBOD has reiterated that his predecessor left no money for cocoa purchase when he took over in 2017.
It comes after Dr Stephen Kwabena Opuni dismissed allegations by Boahen Aidoo that COCOBOD was facing significant financial challenges when he assumed office.
Opuni has since challenged Boahen Aidoo to publish the audited financial report of COCOBOD through documentary evidence that there was no money, to enable the public to ascertain the true state of affairs at COCOBOD at the time.
However, reacting to the development on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday (18 June), Boahen Aidoo said: “I have said it somewhere and my predecessor Dr Opuni is saying that he is challenging me, I have already explained that the records are there and it is not the first time I’m saying this.”
“When we came in 2017, I mentioned that we had no money, so we had to go and borrow, the fact is that the previous NDC administration that Akufo-Addo took over from borrowed US$1.8 billion to buy cocoa and then for other activities.”
He added “By 31 December all the money had been utilised and in January there was no money, they bought cocoa, by January, February when we came they bought over 600 metric tonnes and when we came we also bought over 350,000 metric tonnes. So we borrowed US$2.2 billion and we had to find that money. So we went to the Bank of Ghana and they had to play an intermediary role.”
Listen to Joseph Boahen Aidoo in the attached audio clip below:
Reporting by Fred Dzakpata in Accra
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