Haruna Mohammed, the Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has told the Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson and the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, to stop the fight and propaganda.
According to Haruna Mohammed, the tensions between Ato Forson and Eric Opoku could negatively affect the Mahama government and the agricultural sector.
He describes the tension between the two cabinet ministers as worrying and called for an end to the power struggle.
Speaking on Citi FM’s Eyewitness News, Haruna Mohammed stated, “I’m worried as a Ghanaian, a farmer and also as a politician. Because this goes further to affect the very foundation of our agricultural system. It also affects the trust system. It also affects the power system within the governance state. I believe that what is happening now is very worrying”.
He cited that resources meant for sectoral development should not become tools in political or administrative disputes.
He added, “If you have resources with me, I will sit on them and paint a picture that you refused to perform, while you have it”.
“The power struggle should stop, the fight, propaganda should stop, let everybody have a level playing ground,” he added.
His comments come on the back of the turf war between the Finance Ministry led by Dr Cassiel Ato Forson and the Agric Ministry led by Eric Opoku, which has escalated further over a GH¢1.677 Billion Agriculture Funds Release.
Reports suggest the dispute began when the Deputy Finance Minister Ampem announced GH¢1.677 billion, 85% of non-salary spending, had been released to boost food production and agro-industrialisation.
The Finance Ministry has since published official documents confirming over GH¢1.6 billion released to the Food and Agriculture Ministry.
According to the Finance Ministry, the allocation to the Agric Ministry represents 85% of its 2026 budget allocation for Goods and Services and Capital Expenditure.
“It further explained that all releases except funding to the National Food Buffer Stock Company were initiated by MoFA through standard procedures on the Ghana Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), with each transaction supported by requisition dates, journal numbers, approval dates, and warrant numbers” reports stated.
However, the Ministry of Agriculture quickly countered and disputed the claim, citing February letters capping early spending at GH¢453 million for goods and services, with no new authorisations since.
In a press release by Samuel Hunter, the Media Liaison Officer of the Minister for Food and Agriculture, called for a stop to the infantile propaganda before it explodes.
Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in its release stated, “The attention of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) has been drawn to claims by the Ministry of Finance that it has released GH¢1.6 billion, representing 85% of MOFA’s 2026 budget allocation. These claims do not align with the official budget execution documents issued by the Ministry of Finance itself.
On 15th February 2026, the Ministry of Finance issued a Commitment Authorization to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. However, just four days later, on 19th February 2026, the Ministry of Finance issued the 2026 First and Second Quarter Budget Allotment Letter, which explicitly stated that, notwithstanding the contents of the Commitment Authorization, MOFA’s total expenditure for the first half of the year should not exceed GH¢910 million.
More significantly, the accompanying allotment schedule further restricted actual spending between January and June 2026 to approximately GH¢453 million, covering all expenditures, including staff compensation, contract commitments, and operational activities.
The records indicate that only limited allocations were made to key agricultural interventions, including:
* Farmer Service Centres – GH¢172,500,000.00
* Nkokonkitinkiti Programme – GH¢36,747,767.55
* Fertiliser and Certified Seeds – GH¢77,297,026.30
* Feed Ghana Programme – GH¢4,500,000.00
* National Food Buffer Stock Company – GH¢30,000,000.00
* Irrigation Infrastructure – GH¢26,250,000.00
Since the issuance of the allotment letter, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has not received any subsequent communication from the Ministry of Finance authorising additional expenditures that would support the claim that GH¢1.6 billion has been released”.
