A civil society organisation, United Voices for Change (UVC), has called for the immediate removal of the CEO of Ghana Cocoa Board from office over the mismanagement of the state institution.

Convener for the group, Slyvestine Ronald, questioned Dr. Joseph Aidoo’s continuous stay in office after supervising some massive losses over the years.

"We call for the dismissal of Dr. Joseph Aidoo, the CEO of COCOBOD with immediate effect. He has presided over financial decline and recklessness and has failed to fulfill his mandate of generating profit and revenue," said Mr. Ronald.

He asserted that under the watch of Dr Aidoo, COCOBOD has incurred losses never witnessed in the history of the country.

"In 2017, COCOBOD made a loss of GHS 161.3 million, although its revenues had increased to GHS 10.25 billion from GHS 9.15 billion in the previous year. The company also made losses of GHS 78.22 million in 2018, GHS 320.57 million in 2019, GHS 426.32 million in 2020, and a staggering GHS 2.44 billion in losses in 2021.

“Meanwhile, this was a company that had made reasonable profits of GHS 329.3 million and GHS 152.15 million in 2014 and 2015 respectively. The losses which began in 2016 are ballooning by the years, reaching GHS 2.44 billion in 2021," he explained.

The organization also blames President Akufo-Addo for the constant losses incurred by State Owned Enterprises.

United Voices for Change, therefore, called for apt measures to be put in place to rescue the already deteriorating state institution as it is a major avenue of employment.

To make the SOEs function again, the CSO says all CEOs who are sleeping on the job should be sacked.