A former First Lady, Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, Monday told the Judgement Debt Commission that political interference by the government truncated the plan of Calf Cocoa International Ghana Limited to start operations in 2003.
She said Calf International, which was a joint venture between Caridem Development Ghana Limited and the Chinese International Company for Agriculture and Fisheries, secured a concessionary loan from the Chinese government to go into the production of cocoa products, such as cocoa powder.
The loan, which was supposed to be released in bits, was in the care of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, Nana Konadu, who is the President of the 31st December Women’s Movement (DWM), said.
Terms of contract
She explained that Caridem, supported by the DWM, owned 47 per cent shares, while the Chinese company owned 53 per cent
Caridem was responsible for acquiring the land and bringing in engineers and other things, and consistent with that mandate, she said, it started the process for the acquisition of the land for the project in 1997.
Nana Konadu said after the acquisition of the land, Caridem recruited engineers to work on the project and the structure for the company was completed in 2002, ready to start operations in 2003.
Nana Konadu told the commission that when the Calf Cocoa wrote to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning that it had completed work and wanted to start operations, “politics came to play” and the ministry declined to release the concessionary loan to the company.
She said the Chinese company opted out of the joint venture, citing political pressure.
“The Chinese pulled out because of too much political pressure,” she said.
Court case
The former First Lady said Caridem had already secured the services of some organisations, while it had also spent huge sums of money to connect water and electricity to the factory.
Therefore, she said, Caridem took the case to court in 2005 and got a judgement in its favour in 2008.
She said the state appealed against the judgement but it was upheld by the Court of Appeal.
Nana Konadu said the compensation given to the company was GHc¢4.9 million and emphasised that the company was paid in cedis and not dollars.
She said when Caridem went back to the factory after the judgement, most of the equipment had been stolen, while the electricity and water connected to the place had been disconnected.
Recall
It would be recalled that two weeks ago, a private legal practitioner and counsel for Calf Cocoa, Mr Tony Lithur, had appeared before the commission in respect of the same case.
He had told the commission that $1.8 million had been given to Caridem and the Chinese company by the Chinese government to go into cocoa processing.
However, he said, the Ministry of Finance declined to give out the money to Calf Cocoa to start its operations after the company had set up the company in 2003.
Mr Lithur, who is senior management partner of Lithur, Brew and Co, said Calf Cocoa then decided to take the matter to court.
He said the Commercial Division of the Fast Track High Court gave a judgement on March 8, 2008, asking the state to pay Calf Cocoa the undisbursed $1.8 million.
The court further awarded damages of $1.75 million, accumulated interest of $600,127. 65 and GH¢5,000 costs against the state, which brought the total judgement debt to $4,150,127.50.
Other case
A Principal State Attorney with the Registrar General’s Department, Mr Oladele Kwaku Aribike, also appeared before the commission in respect of the re-registration of Carl Plotner into Construction Pioneers (CP).
