Minority MPs say Cocoa ‘Akuafo Υεγε Mobo Dodo’
Minority Members of Parliament turned up in coordinated black outfits as they staged a symbolic protest during President John Dramani Mahama’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Friday, February 27, 2026.
Clad in black attire and matching kente sashes, the Minority Caucus, led by Minority Leader Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, registered their dissent as the President entered the Chamber to fulfil his constitutional duty under Article 67 of the 1992 Constitution.
Article 67 stipulates that “The President shall, at the beginning of each session of Parliament and before a dissolution of Parliament, deliver to Parliament a message on the state of the nation.”
The protest was not without context as the sashes worn by the New Patriotic Party (NPP) MPs bore the inscription “Cocoa Akuafo Υεγε Mobo Dodo,” a Twi phrase translated to mean that “cocoa farmers have become so pitiful.”
The message was a direct reference to the recent reduction in the farmgate price of cocoa announced by the Ghana Cocoa Board, Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD).
‘Cocoa Akuafo Yɛyɛ Mɔbɔ Dodo’: Watch as NPP MPs mourn farmers at Mahama’s SONA
The government reduced the producer price from GH¢58,000 per tonne (approximately $5,300) to GH¢41,392 (about $3,580) per metric tonne for the remainder of the 2025/2026 cocoa season, a move that has sparked criticism from the Minority.
According to the NPP MPs, the price cut is unfair to cocoa farmers, especially at a time when they say the sector is grappling with declining production and mounting operational challenges.
However, the government has defended the decision. The Minister of Finance Cassiel Ato Forson explained that the adjustment was influenced by market realities.
“The current situation is largely driven by the unwillingness of buyers to purchase Ghana’s cocoa because it has become uncompetitive and very expensive,” he stated.
The Minority’s coordinated singing and visible protest during the address further amplified their position, drawing attention to what they describe as worsening conditions in the cocoa sector and the need for urgent policy reconsideration.
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Watch NPP MPs in all-black as President Mahama delivers 2026 SONA
Source:
www.ghanaweb.com