– COCOBOD’s Research Director tells court at Opuni/Agongo trial
The current Director of Research at Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Dr Francis Baah, has maintained that no cocoa farmer, ever drank lithovit liquid fertilizer in place of water, as claimed by a third prosecution witness, Dr Yaw Adu-Ampomah, Deputy Chief Executive, Agronomy and Quality Control at COCOBOD from 2009 to September 2013.
Though the prosecution relied heavily on the allegation by Dr Adu-Ampomah, whose committee report largely formed the basis for the ongoing trial, the state failed to produce even one farmer to confirm that claim in court or to contest the efficacy of lithovit fertilizer on their farms.
Soon after his disputed testimony, Dr Adu-Ampomah, was removed from COCOBOD and made the special advisor to Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the then Minister of Agriculture on cocoa affairs, he was subsequently moved to National Development Planning Committee (NDPC).
Dr Francis Baah, who was the Executive Director of Cocoa Health and Extension Division (CHED), the arm of COCOBOD that deals directly with farmers, during the period that COCOBOD procured lithovit fertilizer for farmers, stressed that his outfit had regular interactions with farmers as well as farmers’ agents, but the issue of someone drinking lithovit never came up.
He told the High Court in Accra hearing the trial of former COCOBOD Chief Executive, Dr Stephen Opuni and businessman Alhaji Seidu Agongo, that if such a serious issue was ever raised, he would have ensured that it was “documented” for the attention of COCOBOD management.
“While you were the executive director of CHED, did you ever get any complaint from anybody, the people in the distribution chain that any farmer in anywhere saying that Lithovit was like water and they have been drinking it?” counsel for Seidu Agongo, Benson Nutsukpui asked the witness in his evidence in chief.
“My Lord no, no such in information was brought to my knowledge,” Dr. Francis Baah told the court on Tuesday, March 19.
The former Executive Director of CHED had in his earlier testimony to the court confirmed the content of a report based on field visits to cocoa farms in April 2015, where farmers told his technical officers about their preference for lithovit fertilizer over other fertilizers.
He himself told the court that judging by what was observed on the field, he would choose lithovit over other fertilizers because it increased the yields of farmers.
On Tuesday, counsel for Mr Agongo successfully tendered in evidence another document, which is the annual report of the CODAPEC and HITECH unit for the 2014/15 cocoa season dated 28th September 2016.
The document also contains a review of the challenges of the previous year’s activities as well as the development of modalities and procedures for the implementation of the 2014/15 CODAPEC/HITECH program.
According to Dr Baah, those who participated in the review meeting included the Deputy Chief Executive (Agronomy and Quality Control) of COCOBOD, the Executive Director of CHED, other management members of CHED, the Intelligence Unit of COCOBOD, and CODAPEC/HITECH Unit.
The review meeting, as established in court, also focused on the CODAPEC/HITECH distribution of 656,040 litres of lithovit liquid fertilizer to five cocoa regions – Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Eastern, Central, and Volta – covering a total area of 966,020 hectares.
“In the year under review, CHED and all the other entities involved in the distribution chain, nobody had come to complain to you about the farmers who own these hectares of farms having any issues with lithovit for that period, that is correct,” the witness was asked.
Dr Baah answered, “My lord, none that I can recall”.
The witness reiterated that though the review focused mainly on the challenges, no challenge or issues about lithovit liquid fertilizer “was brought to my notice, attention or knowledge”.
Counsel insisted, “Look through exhibit 139 and see if there was any challenge or issues relating to lithovit that came out at the review meeting that reviewed the period under 2014/15”.
The Director of Research at COCOBOD emphasized, “My Lord I have quickly perused the document I cannot find any complaint”.
“Concluding, on page 12, the review was satisfied that the CODAPEC and HITECH activities went well in the year,” counsel pointed out to the witness.
“Yes my Lord it is captured in paragraph 7 of page 12,” Dr Baah stressed.
The former COCOBOD Chief Executive, Dr. Stephen Opuni and businessman Seidu Agongo as well as Agricult Ghana Limited, have been facing 27 charges, including defrauding by false pretences, willfully causing financial loss to the state, corruption by public officers and contravention of the Public Procurement Act.
