{Members of a cooperative of farmers, ASSOPTHE, in Rulindo district in Kinihira sector have accused their leaders of misallocating their money. }
ASSOPTHE cooperative comprises of more than 4000 members practicing agriculture on 26 hectares.
Farmers said the mismanagement of ASSOPTHE started emerging in 2010 and in 2012 it was established that their accountant misappropriated Rwf 3, 5 million which he was obliged to pay back but only paid a half of it.
Members of the ASSOPTHE cooperative say they own six own trucks transporting tea but receive only earn a profit of Rwf 1 million per year, yet in the past a person whose car was hired for tea transportation would buy another car from earnings at the end of the year .
“We have filed our complaints to the Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources and copied the Prime Minister in the letter but nothing has been done. We are waiting for a response from the president of the republic of Rwanda. We don’t understand how a grower of Irish potatoes or potatoes lives better than a tea grower,” said Minani Frodouard, one of tea farmers.
Farmers say that the tea factory gave their leaders Rwf 75,000,000 that would be allocated to farmers from 2010 to 2013 but members of the cooperative received nothing.
The accused accountant Habineza JMV and Rugumbira Claver, the president, say that the accusers only intend to tarnish their names.
The president of Rwanda Cooperative Agency in Northern Province, Hamisi Jean Damascène confirmed to have received written complaints from the farmers requesting their issues to be addressed will be handled in one week.
“We are investigating the matter in one week .If we find cases of property misappropriation, we will transfer a file to the prosecution,” he said.
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