Ban On Importation Of Tomato Puree - Legal Battle Looms

Cans of tomato puree — Their importation stirs controversy.

A legal showdown looms between the government and a group of aggrieved importers over a recent decision by the former to ban the importation of tomato products into the country.

The group is praying the High Court to declare the ban illegal, describing the action as capricious and offensive to the international treaties which Ghana has signed.

Last month, the government announced a total ban on the importation of tomato puree and concentrate, to take effect from November 1, 2007, to protect the Northern Star Tomato Factory at Pwalugu and ensure the quality of tomato products on the markets.

The group, accordingly, has filed an action at the High Court in Accra to the effect that “the ban is illegal, capricious, contrary to the law and sins against international treaties to which Ghana is a signatory and the Golden Age of Business declared under the Directive Principles of State Policy in the 1992 Constitution”.

The plaintiffs are also praying the court to declare that the ban on the importation of tomato paste and concentrate was an infringement on the economic rights of the plaintiffs and other dealers and distributors, together with a perpetual injunction restraining the defendants and any agents from banning the importation of tomato paste and concentrate.

The defendants are the Minister of Trade, Industry, Private Sector Development and President's Special Initiatives and the Attorney-General.

The plaintiffs are Heavenly Enterprises, Accra; Actobaf Enterprises, Kumasi; Kyei Akomeah Ventures, Kumasi; Ladzeco Enterprises, Accra, and Sarfko Enterprises, Accra. They are represented by Sam Okudzeto and Associates of Sena Chambers, Accra.

In their 16-point statement of claim, the plaintiffs argued that they dealt in and distributed imported tomato puree and concentrate and that in line with government policy, they had invested millions of dollars in the economy, trading in various items, including imported tomato puree brands.

They claimed further that they had set up a distribution network through which they sold the brands.

They claimed that on July 26, this year, the Daily Graphic published a story to the effect that Northern Star Tomato Factory faced closure as a result of the under invoicing of imports of tomato puree.

According to the plaintiffs, the first defendant, between August 2 and 3, 2007, contrary to law, caused to be published in the Ghanaian Times and the Daily Graphic a notice to the effect that the importation of tomato puree and concentrate was to be temporarily banned with effect from November 1, 2007.

They claimed the publication stated that the directive was intended to curtail unfair trade practices associated with the importation of tomato puree and concentrate.

The plaintiffs claimed that the act of the minister and the ministry in banning the importation of a basic ingredient in the daily diet of Ghanaians by mere publication in the media was arbitrary, capricious, illegal and ultra vires.

They said the act of the minister and the ministry was calculated to cause financial loss and economic hardship to the plaintiffs and the numerous workers they employed.

They claimed that the minister and the ministry could not rely on unsubstantiated alleged wrongdoing to unilaterally ban the importation of tomato puree and concentrate and that the alleged under invoicing, if proved, was a tax offence and not unfair competition or trade practice within the letter and spirit of the law.

According to them, if the illegal ban on the importation of tomato puree and concentrate was allowed to come into effect, thousands of workers employed by the plaintiffs and other importers would be rendered unemployed.

They claimed that the illegal ban on the importation of tomato puree and concentrate was an attack on their economic rights and an attempt to create a monopoly in the Ghanaian market for Northern Star Factory, a private limited liability company.

The plaintiffs claimed that the illegal ban would result in the plaintiff companies losing all their investments running into thousands of Ghana cedis.