|
Momodou
Denmark
11828 Posts |
 Posted - 01 Jun 2006 : 16:48:39
|
Editorial
When Will The Farmers Be Paid?
When will the farmers be paid? The matter has now become very serious. The hard won nuts of the farmers were taken from them with the hope that they would soon be paid but up to this very day the majority of those whose nuts were taken on credit are yet to be paid. Some even gave nuts on credit since December 2005.
This is the case in spite of the usual firm promise made by the President and his government that there would be no credit buying. Not only was there credit buying, the buyers did not honour their part of the bargain. This led the Secretary of State for Agriculture to make another promise - that all farmers would be paid by the end of April, which never happened. When this was exposed he again promised farmers that arrangements were under way to pay the farmers in early May.
Our information is that out of the 48 million dalasis owed to farmers only 12 million dalasis has been paid, leaving an outstanding balance of 36 million dalasis still owed. Reports of recent payment of some farmers have only been heard of in the North Bank.
It is quite evident that the government has not bought the farmers groundnuts. Infact, its position is that that is not the business of government; that all it can do is to encourage the private sector to take the lead and simply act as facilitator. The above facts have shown that this policy has woefully failed.
The dire consequence for the farmers is immense poverty and misery.
If the government cannot simply ensure that the principal crop of the country is purchased and the farmers receive the price of their produce in good time, could it be said to be a government that is capable of solving the problems of the farmers? If for the sake of pomp and show or vain pride a government spends D118 million to host an AU Summit while it cannot purchase the nuts of the farmers, can this not be said to be mismanaging the affairs of the nation? These are questions for the electorate to reflect on particularly this year.
Source:Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 42/2006, 1 June - 4 June, 2006
|
A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
|
Topic Locked
