By MAYA NTANDA –
MWINILUNGA District Farmers’ Cooperative Union has sued the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) for alleged breach of contractual obligations amounting to K833 million.
In a statement of claim before Kitwe High Court judge-in-charge Catherine Makungu, the cooperative wants K833, 763,634 in unpaid dues from FRA for various farming activities undertaken by the union on behalf of the agency.
The union noted that in 2005 it was tasked to work on annual contracts as warehouse managers for FRA maize marketing activities in Mwinilunga, to receive, clean dispatch, grade and weigh maize delivered by farmers to community satellite depots.
The duration of the contract was subject to accepting that FRA should deduct all outstanding debts resulting from losses incurred by the agency.
It was further agreed that the cooperative would facilitate recovery of moneys owed to the FRA by primary cooperative societies and organisations that ran satellite depots during the previous marketing seasons.
“The defendants have deliberately neglected or refused to honour in full the season marketing contracts from 2010 and has only paid about 43 per cent  thereby leaving 57 percent of the contracts unsatisfied which it has unlawfully continued to use to its benefit,” read the statement.
The farmers alleged that though the 2008 crop marketing exercise was executed, monthly reciprocation by FRA was often reckless and consequently strained on the cooperatives’ long standing relationship with the farming community.
The union further alleged that FRA deliberately neglected to pay the plaintiff the money recovered for 1,061 bags of maize stolen by three employees in the sum of K48, 640.
It also alleged that FRA had neglected to pay office rentals occupied by the agency’s marketing assistants from June 2010 to July 2013 amounting to K13, 850.
Despite the use of electricity from June 2010 to July 2013, FRA has not settled a bill of K7, 050, and K4, 300 being water bills.
The cooperative has asked the court that the FRA be condemned in costs for the action and also sought payment of the total amount owed.