Covid-19: Minority condemns government for reserving the BoG Hospital for VIPs

The Minority caucus in parliament has condemned the Government’s decision to open up the Bank of Ghana Hospital for the elite class of citizens and staff of the Bank of Ghana only.

According to the Minority, the Hospital was built out of the sweat of of the taxpayer of all Ghanaians and every citizen has the right to access healthcare in the facility.

Ranking Member on the Health Committee of Parliament, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, stated this in parliament on Wednesday April 1,2020 when he addressed the press.

There have been unconfirmed reports in the media that the Akufo-Addo government has unofficially opened the 92-bed capacity Bank of Ghana Hospital at Cantonments for public use, but strictly for Very Important Personalities (VIP) and staff members of the Bank of Ghana.

The facility which was completed since 2016 by former President John Mahama, has remained under-lock and key since 2017 after the change of government.

However, with the outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus, the existing facilities in the capital city of Accra have become overwhelmed with both normal patients and infected coronavirus patients.

This has undoubtedly pushed the Akufo-Addo government to nichodemously opened the Bank of Ghana Hospital to receive persons perceived to be of high class in society.

But the Minority members of parliament became incensed by the government’s discriminatory decision, they have therefore and urged the Ministry of Health and for that matter the government to reverse the idea immediately.

Mintah Akandoh, told members of the Parliamentary Press Corps that the facility which was started and completed by the previous administration under the leadership of former President John Mahama, was to augment the fleet of Hospitals in the country to provide quality but accessible and affordable healthcare to every Ghanaian irrespective of his or her economic or social status.

He said it was totally illegal and unacceptable for the government to open the facility and made it accessible to only members within the VIP classes in society and that of only staff of the Bank of Ghana.

In his view, the move is a complete insult to the rest of Ghanaian taxpayers, stating, ”there is no important person in this country more than the other.”

“We are all equal before the law. We all pay taxes according to our earnings. I am a member of parliament for Juanoso, not because, I am the only person who can be a member of parliament for Juaboso, but ….because we need only one person at a time. And so that does not make me, Hon Mintah Akandoh, more important than the rest of the people of Juaboso or any part of the Western North,” the Minority Spokesperson on Health fumed.

He, however, hinted that the Minority would not hesitate to summon the Minister for Health, Hon Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, to parliament to give a further and better explanation to what has been reported regarding the class of people to access the Bank of Ghana Hospital.

Source: Felix Nyaaba || therepublicnewsonline.com