The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Ministry of Education, Kwasi Kwarteng, has refuted claims that 22,000 bags of rice distributed to senior high schools nationwide were expired, asserting that the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) declared the rice wholesome for consumption.
This clarification follows allegations made by North Tongu MP, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, that the Free Senior High School Secretariat had distributed 22,000 bags of 50kg rice that had expired, been repackaged, and then supplied to schools. He further claimed that the FDA fined Lamens, the company responsible for the repackaging, GH₵100,000.
At a press briefing on Monday, November 18, the Minority in Parliament, led by Mr. Ablakwa, demanded the arrest of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and directors of Lamens for their alleged actions.
In an interview with Joy News, Mr. Kwarteng addressed these claims, stating that the rice had not expired. He clarified that the FDA’s fine was not due to the distribution of unwholesome food but rather because Lamens repackaged the rice without obtaining prior approval.
“For the record, Lamens was fined for not getting authorisation for the repackaging of the food. It has nothing to do with the declaration of the wholesomeness of the food,” Mr. Kwarteng said.
He explained that the rice had a “best before” date of December 2023, and while Lamens sought an extension of this date from the FDA, they proceeded with repackaging before receiving approval.
“The FDA did not fine Lamens for unwholesome food. The best-before date was apparently extended, but what they were fined for was the fact that they didn’t get approval for the repackaging,” he added.
Mr. Kwarteng dismissed Mr. Ablakwa’s allegations as baseless and questioned the logic of the claims. “Who would fine an agency just GH₵100,000 for supplying 22,000 bags of unwholesome food? Who, even in the Ministry of Education, would approve the distribution of 22,000 bags of unwholesome rice to schools across Ghana? Would the Minister of Education sit there and say that 22,000 bags of rice should be distributed to schools, knowing they were unwholesome, and we would all just sit there and clap over it?” he quizzed.
He accused the MP of pursuing an agenda to create “needless alarm.”
Meanwhile, the Auditor General’s report revealed that Lamens Ventures had previously supplied unwholesome food items, including 65 bags of rice and five cartons of milk, to some senior high schools in 2021.
The report highlighted that these items, which were expired or unsafe for consumption at the time of an audit in September 2021, were delivered to Prestea Hunni Valley Senior High and Technical School and Asankragwa Senior High School.
“In contravention of Section 52 of the PFM Act, 2016 (Act 921), we noted that supplies of 65 bags of rice in March 2021 to Prestea Hunni Valley Senior High and Technical School, and five cartons of Carnation milk to Asankragwa Senior High School by Lamens Ventures were found to be unwholesome at our time of audit in September though the expiry date on the product was October 2021,” the report stated.
The Auditor General raised concerns about the health risks posed to students if the expired items had been consumed and advised the schools to report the matter to the National Buffer Stock Company for proper resolution.