Opuni trial:I broke 2015/2016 harvest year record with Lithovit- 3rd witness tells court
At the last sitting of the court, the presiding judge, Clemence Honyenuga JSC ordered the former CEO of the COCOBOD, Dr. Stephen Opuni to call his next witness as the 2nd witness recuperates.
The third defence witness in the ongoing trial involving the former CEO of COCOBOD, Dr.Stephen Opuni, and another has testified at the High Court.
Mr. Thomas Amankwah, a cocoa farmer with 15.9 and 14 acres in the Ashanti Region and a similar one in the Bono Region indicated in his evidence in chief that in the 2016/2017 cocoa season, he requested and was supplied with Lithovit fertilizer, which gave him a tremendous yield that year over the previous one.
Additionally, he noted that he and other cocoa farmers were initially introduced to fertilizers like Sidalco and Lithovit in the 2014/2015 cocoa season at a training workshop by officers from COCOBOD thus the Cocoa Health and Extension Division.
Due to the impressive results he received by using the fertilizer, Mr. Amankwah revealed that in the 2017/2018 year, he had to go to the open market to find some to buy after he was told that they had ceased supplying it.
At the last sitting of the court, the presiding judge, Clemence Honyenuga JSC ordered the former CEO of the COCOBOD, Dr. Stephen Opuni to call his next witness as the 2nd witness, Samuel Torbi, who was absent in court for the second time was allowed to recuperate.
Also, he was not happy about the seemingly sudden sickness of all witnesses called for the first accused.
Further to the above, the 3rd defense witness told the court that farmers were given a passbook in which all cocoa beans harvested and sold were recorded.
Background
Dr. Opuni and Agongo, the CEO of Agricult Ghana Limited, are on trial for allegedly engaging in illegalities in a series of fertilizer transactions which the Attorney-General (A-G) says caused a financial loss of GH¢271.3 million to the state.
They were dragged to court by the A-G in March 2018 on 27 charges, including willfully causing financial loss to the state, defrauding by false pretense, contravention of procurement laws, corruption of a public officer, and money laundering.
