Kwasi Kwarteng
The Ministry of Education has dismissed allegations that expired rotten rice was served to Senior High School (SHS) students across the country early this year.
According to Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP for North Tongu, 22,000 bags of expired 50kg rice were allegedly distributed to various senior high schools. He made these claims at a press conference in Accra yesterday.
He asserted that Lamens Investments Africa Limited, the importers, allegedly repackaged the questionable rice bags at the National Buffer Stock Company’s facility in Kumasi, Ashanti Region.
He claimed that the Indian rice that expired on December 20, 2023, was allegedly repackaged as ‘Made-in-Ghana’ rice in February 2024 and distributed in 50kg polypropylene bags.
Wholesome
But responding to the allegations, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Education Ministry, Kwasi Kwarteng, described the claims as “unfounded and misleading,” assuring that the rice supplied to schools was safe and wholesome.
He explained that the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) certified the 22,000 bags of rice distributed to secondary schools as safe for consumption, contrary to initial expiration claims.
Disputing the MP’s persistent allegations, Mr. Kwarteng told Accra-based Joy News that the rice was still good to eat and had not expired.
The Ministry’s PRO also clarified that Lamens was not fined for distributing unwholesome food, but rather for not getting FDA approval before repackaging the rice.
“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,” he stressed.
Mr. Kwarteng stated that the rice’s ‘best before’ date was indeed December 2023, but emphasised that this did not necessarily indicate expiration.
According to him, the FDA had not labeled the rice as expired at the time of repackaging, adding, “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.”
“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.
According to Mr. Kwarteng, MP Ablakwa’s allegations were a calculated effort to create unwarranted public anxiety by manufacturing a crisis where none existed.
By Ernest Kofi Adu