When caterers working for the government’s school food program in the Ashanti Region presented him with a petition on Monday, April 3, the Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, explained why he had reacted furiously.
The caterers expressed their dissatisfaction with the regional minister over how he received them and demanded that the government pay them their arrears as well as increase the amount.
But Mr. Simon Osei Mensah claims in a media interview that the caterers’ failure to obey the rules and their protests at the Regional Coordinating Council forced him to act in the way that he did.
Yesterday, I was in a meeting when I heard a noise outside the office. I sent my special assistant to find out what was going on. When he returned, he informed me that the caterers were protesting outside.
One can only imagine what would have happened if the security staff at the Regional Coordination Council had responded to them, since they did not even obtain security clearance before the demonstration.
“We must be truthful to ourselves in this country and stop pampering people because impunity is too much. Even though I feel bad for the caterers, we shouldn’t permit people to breach the law in an effort to get their concerns addressed.
We ought to use legal procedures to resolve our issues. I won’t allow you to simply take the law into your own hands and do whatever you please.”