General News of Saturday, 20 January 2018
Source: citifmonline.com
2018-01-20
Minority Leader, Haruna Iddrisu
The Minority in Parliament has asked government to stop interfering in the affairs of the University of Ghana Medical Centre.
There has been a tussle between the Ministry of Health and the University over the control of the facility which has been abandoned for nearly a year, since the completion of the first phase.
The installation of all the necessary medical equipment for operations at the facility to commence is in place.
The Minority in a statement said it found it unfortunate, government’s moves to take over the facility since UG had signed an agreement with the Health Ministry, to entrust full ownership of the medical centre to the school.
“In 2015, the University of Ghana signed an agreement with the Ministry of Health in respect of the ownership, management and continued funding requirements of the University of Ghana Hospital and to entrust ownership of the hospital fully to the University of Ghana. This Hospital had been part of a bigger plan of the University of Ghana to develop a comprehensive Medical Centre towards achieving independence in medical education, research and care in a sustainable manner.
“This is why the Minority regards as unfortunate the overt gestures of the Minister of Health to derail well thought out plans by several governments over the years and to claim and wrestle ownership of the Hospital from the University of Ghana. The latter has the mandate to produce quality health professionals for health care delivery and to prosecute research to address national health challenges which ultimately would lead to improved health security for the nation,” excerpts of the statement said.
The 617-bed facility has ultra-modern medical gadgets for treating complicated medical conditions, and a helipad to airlift patients with emergency cases as well as a medical hotel.
Background
The government of Ghana in 2012 under the former President John Evans Atta-Mills entered into an agreement with Messrs Engineering and Development Consultant (EDC) of Israel to build the first phase of the Center.
According to former deputy Minister of Health, Rojo Mettle Nunoo, the original plan of the government was to allow the University of Ghana to manage the facility but the facility after its face phase was inaugurated by former President John Mahama on January 6, 2017, is still not in use because the Ministry of Health wants to take over its management.
Last week, cabinet gave a directive for the Ministry’s take over the facility, leading to some national security operatives storming the premises.
Although the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, Robert Cudjoe had denied that the national security operatives were there to take over the facility, he argued that the Ministry need to take over management of the facility because it had oversight responsibility for all health facilities in the country.
“The Ministry is taking over, just like it is mandated to ensure the health of the populace for national development. All health-related facilities in Ghana, both public and private all fall under the purview of the Ministry of Health, so it was strange for anybody to say that a particular hospital shouldn’t have the ministry of health coming close,” Robert Cudjoe said in a Citi News interview.
We need $6m to run $217m UG Medical Centre – Government
Meanwhile, a Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu, has said an amount of 6 million US dollars is needed to begin operations at the University of Ghana Medical Centre.
According to him, the first phase of the Medical Centre, which cost 217 million dollars to establish, is yet to be completed because of the lack of funds needed for its operationalization.
“The hospital has not been officially handed over to the Ministry, it is not complete, as we speak now, the operationalization is not like the working capital, we need to put certain things in place before the hospital can be open to the public,” he said.
Speaking in an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu said his outfit also needs an additional 50 million US dollars to complete the second phase of the project.
Presidency intervenes in UG, MoH impasse over Medical Centre
In the latest development, the Ministry of Health, University of Ghana and the Ministry of Education, have resolved to amicably settle their differences to ensure a quick operationalization of the 217 million-dollar University of Ghana Medical Centre, following an intervention by the Presidency in the impasse.
The parties, in a meeting convened at the Flagstaff House on Tuesday, reaffirmed their commitment to the full implementation of the project which was commissioned by former President John Mahama in January 2017.