Trade Minister Kobina Tahir Hammond has revealed that the Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG) dismissed his directive regarding cement pricing.

In an interview with Evans Mensah on Joy News’ PM Express, the Minister shared that he had heard rumours about CMAG members mocking his efforts.

“I heard through the grapevine that they were teasing me, saying, ‘The Minister can’t do it. Nobody can resolve this matter of cement pricing,’” he recounted.

In response, Minister Hammond summoned two CMAG members to his office, questioning them, “Why do you think the Minister is powerless to control cement prices?”

The members denied making such comments.

However, the Minister continued to receive feedback indicating scepticism about his ability to regulate prices.

He acknowledged the challenges posed by a free market system, stating, “I understand it is a free economy, so everyone does what they want.”

He emphasised that a free economy should not equate to exploiting consumers.

“My understanding of a free economy is not the freedom to cheat or fleece people. Economic enterprise is about the freedom of trade and achieving profits within reasonable means, not making senseless and unreasonable profits at the expense of the citizenry,” he said.

At the inauguration of the Cement Manufacturing Development Committee (CMDC) in March, Alhaji Hammond directed the committee to instruct the Cement Manufacturers Association of Ghana (CMAG) to immediately reverse the recent increase in cement prices.

He also requested that all cement manufacturers in the country publish their retail prices to curb continuous arbitrary price hikes.

Additionally, he urged the committee to collaborate with cement companies to ensure uniform cement prices nationwide.

He suggested adopting a unified cement pricing mechanism similar to the Unified Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF) used by the National Petroleum Authority for fuel retail in Ghana.

Despite these directives, CMAG did not comply, prompting the introduction of a Legislative Instrument (L.I) to regulate cement prices.

However, Rev. Dr. George Dawson-Ahmoah, Executive Secretary of CMAG, expressed surprise at the Trade Ministry’s actions.

He argued that the Minister’s approach to reducing prices was akin to putting the cart before the horse.

Dr. Dawson-Ahmoah emphasized that CMAG was not consulted about the proposal and therefore had no knowledge of the draft document’s contents.