Cocoa is a key export commodity for Ghana
Cocoa carriers at Kumasi depot have laid down their tools
Ghana and Ivory Coast account for almost 60% of world supplies for cocoa beans
Workers call for salary concerns to be addressed
There are fears that cocoa beans that are expected to be exported through Ghana’s main cocoa trading centres, risk being left to rot as operations have been suspended at the Cocoa Marketing Company (CMC) depot of Kumasi in the Ashanti region.
According to an Asaase News report, cocoa carriers of the depot are protesting against management of the company and its associates over failure on their part to address their wages and other concerns.
Raymond Abagna, leader of the protest group, told the news portal that all efforts to get management to heed to their concerns have proved futile.
“The management is aware. We have written a letter to them more than a month now. They have not responded to us.”
“We are not only protesting in Kumasi but Tema is also included, Takoradi – all the three centres in Ghana where there are cocoa carriers, [we] are protesting,” Abagna added.
The leader of the group however indicated that should their concerns not be addressed, the government will be left to bear the brunt.
“The effect is that government will suffer … because it will affect most of the public workers, police, soldiers, because they are being paid through cocoa money,” he concluded.