The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Agricult Ghana Limited, Seidu Agongo, who has been accused of selling sub-standard fertiliser to Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), is pointing figures at the cocoa supervisory institution for purchasing questionable Cocoa Nti Fertiliser.
According to him, an ad hoc disciplinary committee set up in respect of matters relating to the testing of the Cocoa Nti Fertiliser recommended that the initial final report on the product submitted to COCOBOD should be withdrawn.
Seidu Agongo, through his lawyer, Nutifafa Nutsukpui, said one of the scientists who purportedly conducted the test on the fertiliser responded to a query that they acted on a verbal communication from the Deputy Chief Executive Agronomy and Quality Control (A&QC).
Lawyer Nutifafa led his client to disclose this while cross-examining the Attorney General’s principal witness, Dr Yaw Adu Ampomah, on Monday at the Accra Criminal High Court presided over by Justice Honyenuga.
The defence counsel revealed that the ad hoc committee, chaired by Rev. FA. E. O K Odeoy, the then Executive Director of the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG), recommended that one of the scientists, Dr Alfred Arthur, should be sanctioned and transferred from the CRIG campus.
Mr Nutskpui told the court that though the ad hoc committee called for the withdrawal of the Cocoa Nti Fertiliser, yet COCOBOD, in 2018, procured Cocoa Nti fertilisers regardless.
He added that COCOBOD purchased the agrochemical at the time when CRIG had “never issued any certificate covering that product called Cocoa Nti.”
Dr Yaw Adu Ampomah -third the prosecution witness (PW3)- who has been Deputy Chief Executive for A&QC on two occasions, informed the court he did not know about the product prior to taking the position for the second time.
He said what the lawyer was suggesting was not true, and that “all the companies here [on a list] have valid certificates. Otherwise, the PPA (Public Procurement Authority) would not have approved it.”
The Cocoa Nti fertiliser was purchased based on subsequent tests, which he explained that when they assumed office in 2017, the company wrote to COCOCBOD to inquire about the outcome of the CRIG test of their samples in order to get certification for the product.
He said COCOBOD contacted CRIG and it confirmed that they had done a one-year test on the field and were waiting for the company to supply more samples to continue with the testing for the final year report.
COCOBOD asked that the product should be retested in the laboratory just to ensure that its composition had not changed, because the company wanted to change few things on the product.
“CRIG confirmed to COCOBOD that, indeed, it was the same product they have done the first year testing on. CRIG was asked to follow up with the second year testing, which they did. And, they submitted the final report to COCOBOD, upon which COCOBOD instructed CRIG to issue out a certificate to the company. And, my lord it, was based on that certificate that COCOBOD procured the 2018 fertiliser from the company,” he explained
Dr Adu Ampomah added that he was aware that Dr Alfred Arthur was suspended, but did not know it was because of the Cocoa Nti fertiliser, even though he was aware that it was related to the testing of some fertiliser.
According to him, Dr Alfred Arthur resumed work after serving his suspension.
The post COCOBOD purchased ‘questionable’ Cocoa Nti Fertiliser -Agongo appeared first on The Chronicle Online.
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