Members of the National Food Suppliers Association (NAFSA) spent the second night at the premises of the National Food Buffer Company (NAFCO) in Accra to press home their demand for the government to pay them GH¢270 million as two-years' arrears owed them for the supply of foodstuffs to various senior high schools.
When the Ghanaian Times visited the NAFCO Cantonments head office in Accra yesterday as of 11:00 am, the suppliers who had come from different parts of the country were seen lying on the ground while others were carrying placards with inscriptions, "Banks are auctioning our properties"; "Our creditors are sending us to court"; "Mr President, please order buffer stock to pay us", "Pay us our money for peace to prevail"; "Enough of your deceit and intimidation", and "Stop under-invoicing supplies."
The premises were also littered with cooking stoves, cooking utensils, mattresses and mats to sleep on since according to them, they have no intention of backing out until they are paid.
The spokesperson for NAFSA, Kwaku Amedume, speaking to journalists said "we had intended to picket on June 13, but the management of NAFCO engaged us in a closed-door meeting with stakeholders to resolve the matter by promising to pay us in two weeks.
However, he said the promise was not honoured, adding that "Nobody has called us to tell us where and how our money is going to be paid that is why we are picketing."
"We got to know from the Ministry of Education that, 90 per cent of our money has been paid to the Chief Executive Officer of NAFCO, so we came asking how the money was given but we were still not paid and he said he had used the money," he said.
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Mr Amedume stressed that, the non-payment of the arrears was affecting the members of the association negatively as most of them depended on credit for their business and some little credibility to do businesses.
"Now they have money, because of the money they dwill pay to us, they have gone to contract different suppliers who are now supplying the various schools with food. In this case they are paying cash," he noted.
He stated that NAFCO was demonstrating insensitiveness towards the association especially the women as NAFSA was there for them when they needed them the most.
"We will be here until the monies are paid, without the money we will not leave," he said.
The secretary of NAFSA, Mr Patrick Effah, said the members were ready and willing to spend all nights at the picketing premises until their monies were pay.
"We will be here until we are paid because when we go home we will not be able to do anything as our work has been taken away from us because our monies are locked with NAFCO," he noted.
All efforts to speak with NAFCO officials proved unsuccessful as the journalists were informed by the junior staff that their bosses had gone to Kumasi for a World Food Programme (WFP) training seminar in Kumasi.
