DRUGS BOARD OFFICIALS SEIZE ROTTEN FISH (BACK PAGE)

FOR the third time this year, authorities of the Food and Drugs Board (FDB) in Tamale have confiscated a large quantity of rotten fish from the Tamale Cold Store that was being sold to the unsuspecting public.
This time, 200 cartons of rotten and maggot-infested fish were retrieved from a dysfunctional storage facility at the Cold Store.
According to the Northern Regional Zonal Officer of the FDB, Mr Solomon Agampim, in the first instance, 150 cartons of unwholesome fish were destroyed and the proprietor, Mohammed Hardi, was fined GH¢100, while 300 cartons of fish were destroyed in the second offence with a GH¢200 fine.
Mr Agampim said this time round, the FDB was waiting for their head office in Accra to spell out the charges to press against the recalcitrant owners of the cold store.
‘‘What is more surprising is that, in spite of the fines and the cautions to the public, food vendors, especially kenkey sellers, continue to patronise the fish from that particular cold store,’’ the officer stated.
He said following the repulsive stench emanating from the storage facility, some nearby residents on Monday called and drew the attention of the FDB to the development.
Mr Agampim said the FDB immediately locked up the cold store after which it collected and destroyed the unwholesome fish.
He quoted portions of the FDB law 1992 that states clearly that, ‘‘Any person who sells or offers for sale any food that consists in whole or part of any filthy, putrid, rotten, decomposed or diseased substance’’ contravenes the law of the country.
Mr Agampim observed that the high patronage of the unwholesome fish could be attributed to the fact that it sold cheaper coupled with the desire of food vendors to maximise profit.
When the Daily Graphic visited the premises of the cold store, some customers were seen waiting for their turn to purchase some of the fish, which the proprietor claimed was stored in a different freezer and therefore not part of the rotten fish.
Mr Hardi further explained that in the first two instances his landlord caused the disconnection of electricity supply to his cold store while attributing mechanical fault to the latest incident.