Some youth of Aflao in the Volta Region, have accused government of being insensitive to the imminent downsizing of Diamond Cement, a local cement manufacturing company, as a result of a lingering rift between Nigeria’s Dangote Cement and the local manufacturers.
Diamond Cement has constantly raised concerns about Dangote’s involvement in the retail of the product in Ghana, describing it as unfair competition.
The development is said to have reduced Diamond Cement’s annual production capacity of 1.8 million bags, to 1.3 million bags.
[contextly_sidebar id=”Ec6EPWhgLHPtww3rToyIFDhMzKqHTKAL”]The youth group; Aflao Youth Association, mostly casual workers of Diamond Cement, said the situation is threatening their livelihoods as businesses that fall within the Company’s market chain are gradually folding up.
“Hundreds of our brothers and sisters have been directly employed by this company, thousands indirectly and the clear and present danger posed by cement importation to the continued existence of Diamond Cement, has created some uneasiness among those who directly and indirectly earn their upkeep from the company and their dependents.”
Government’s resolve to create jobs questioned
The statement signed by the Chairman Christian Yevunya, said their petitions to the government about the situation have not been unanswered.
“We took many steps including writing petitions, demonstrations, press statements and conferences to register our concerns and fears. It appears our concerns have fallen on deaf ears. We are yet to have our petitions responded to and never engaged by the powers that be to make an input into any step that the Ministry may want to take,” they lamented.
The group further questioned government’s resolve to create jobs for unemployed youth in the country.
“It clearly beats our imagination why in one breath we revive collapsed Komenda Sugar Factory to produce for domestic consumption thereby reducing huge sugar import bill that weighs heavily on our finances, and creating thousands of jobs for Ghanaians whereas in another breath, we open the flood gates for imports in a sector that has sufficient, in fact surplus production capacity. The supposed desire of Government to create jobs for the teaming unemployed youth of this country is now weighing heavily on our minds as to whether the Government really cares about our joblessness or its only when the jobs will give votes that they care,” the statement added.
The group is however calling on government through the Trade Ministry to expedite action to avert the negative impact of the operations of Dangote Cement in the country.
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By: King Norbert Akpablie/citifmonline.com/Ghana