Former President and National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearer, John Dramani Mahama, has sharply criticized the Akufo-Addo administration for what he described as the collapse of Ghana’s largest indigenous cocoa buying company, Produce Buying Company Limited (PBC).
Speaking at a campaign rally in Enchi Aowin in the Western North Region, Mahama accused the government of widespread mismanagement, with PBC being a key example of its failure.
The NDC’s campaign team is currently in the Western North Region, a stronghold for the party where it has consistently garnered over 50% of the presidential vote since 1996.
For this election, the NDC aims to increase its support to around 80% to boost Mahama’s chances of regaining the presidency.
During his address, Mahama underscored the region’s significance as Ghana’s primary cocoa-producing area and focused on the struggles faced by cocoa farmers and the broader agricultural economy.
A major concern raised was the dire situation at PBC, where workers have reportedly gone unpaid for up to eight or nine months, with no clear timeline for when payments will be made.
Mahama lamented the decline of PBC, a company that has been in operation since the era of Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, and was once responsible for purchasing 30% of the country’s exported cocoa. He attributed the company’s current debt and mismanagement to the current administration.
The former president also criticized the economic policies of the Akufo-Addo government, asserting that the ongoing hardships have disproportionately benefited a select few, leaving the majority of Ghanaians to bear the brunt of economic struggles.
“In 8 years, the economy has dwindled. When I was President, PBC bought 30% of Ghana’s cocoa. Now they can no longer do so. The company has collapsed under this government. For eight years they have not been able to pay the workers as well”
“This election is about the economy and unemployment. You need to ask yourselves whether your living conditions have improved or not. Just a few have better living conditions and these people are those closer to the government”
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