The Dome-Kwabenya Constituency branch of the opposition National Democratic Congress, NDC, has described as a deliberate attempt by President Akuffo Addo and his party, New Patriotic Party NPP to discredit former President John Mahama for initiating and completing various infrastructure projects yet to be commissioned by the government.
The orchestrated plans by President Akuffo Addo and his team were caught when they put out an information that the newly commissioned 100 bed Ga East Municipal Hospital at Kwabenya formed part of the Ghana Hospital Project initiated in 2008.
President Akufo-Addo on November 6, 2019, commissioned the 100 bed Ga East Municipal Hospital, one of former President Mahama legacies.
At a press conference at Kwabena a suburb of Accra to set the records straight, the former Ga East Municipal Chief Executive, John Kwao Sackey, noted that as usual by the President not wanting to give credit to former President Mahama administration, he lied by saying the hospital formed part of the Ghana Hospital Projects.
Explaining that the hospital project was originally meant to be sited at Madina Kekele park which was then part of the Ga East Municipal Assembly.
Mr. Sackey added that due to the small size of the land, it was relocated to the Ga East Municipal Youth in Afforestation Teak Plantation in Kwabenya, which the Assembly developed in cooperation with the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission to prevent encroachment on their land.
Funds according to the former Chief Executive, were secured for all nine hospitals by former President Mahama including; 1 Military Hospital, 2 Regional Hospitals, and 6 District Hospitals.
The former MCE added that former President Mahama on June 22, 2016, as part of his “Accounting To The People” tour of the Greater Accra region, inspected the progress of the work of the hospital project.
John Kwao Sackey further emphasized that the contract was signed in 2014 and was to be completed in 36 months thus in 2017 by a Chinese contractor.
But when President Akuffo Addo assumed office directed that all developmental projects across the country including the Ga East Municipal Hospital at Kwabenya be suspended, delaying it for nine months and later asked contractors to go back to site.
Touching on the National Health Insurance Scheme as alleged by President that the NDC had already collapsed the scheme when he took over the administration but rather saw massive improvements.
Enrollment records shows that from 2004 to 2008, cumulative figures of the National Health Insurance membership was approximately 5-point-8 million cedis.
“However, from 2009 to 2016, active membership was over registered with the scheme as added year without considering the people who have died or have renewed their membership and are current to access healthcare with their membership card”. Mr. Sackey stated.
” On the other hand, active membership means those who have renewed their membership that year plus newly registered members all in good standing and can receive healthcare with health insurance cards”. He added.
Mr. Sackey, therefore, refuted assertions by the President Akufo-Addo that the NDC collapse the NHIS saying; how can a scheme which increased in membership and be said to have collapsed.
Mr. Sackey enumerated some of the projects that the Ga-East Municipality benefited from during his tenure as MCE and Mahama’s administration.
They included the Dome Market, Haatso Market, Abokobi Market, and the Taifa Burkina market. The rest are; the E-block Senior High School at Kwabenya, Basic School Buildings, Asphalt roads at St. John’s -Dome, Haatso -Agbogba, Abokobi maternity block and Abokobi bypass. Others including; Abokobi Sessimi road, Abokobi Police Station, Provision of furniture to basic schools and the Construction of the water reservoir at Boi that supplies water to the people of Ashongman estates and its environs.
Source: ghanaiandemocrat.com
