President Akufo-Addo cutting the sod while Otumfuo Osei Tutu II looks on
PRESIDENT NANA Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo yesterday fulfilled his pledge to complete the abandoned Mother and Baby Unit (MBU) project at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi when he cut the sod for the commencement of the project.
The 800-bed medical facility was initiated way back in 1976 during the Kutu Acheampong military regime, which is exactly 44 years ago, but it has been neglected by successive governments, thereby making the edifice a white elephant.
Incensed by the increasing mothers and babies fatalities at KATH due to lack of space and equipment, President Akufo-Addo, during a working visit to KATH in 2017, vowed to complete the abandoned project.
Addressing a gathering which included the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, during a sod-cutting ceremony to ‘Reactivate Works’ on the MBU project yesterday, President Akufo-Addo said the facility would cost €155 million Euros.
According to him, full funding for the project had been secured already by his NPP government, adding that the almost 800-bed facility would be completed in 36 months’ time to help KATH realize its vision of providing excellent healthcare to its patients.
Giving a brief history of the project, President Akufo-Addo said, “This project started in 1976 and came to a standstill in 1979; it was activated in 1999 but works stopped again and in 2004, former President Kufuor took it up but works stopped after he had left office.
“Works totally halted after the exit of Mr. Kufuor from political office until another New Patriotic Party (NPP) government, led by me, came into office,” stressing that the completion of the project would boost healthcare delivery in the country.
“This edifice, upon completion, would serve as a referral centre for 12 out of the 16 regions in our country,” he emphasized. “It would boast of 10 operating theatres, students’ lecture halls, isolation rooms, cafeteria and pharmacy, among others,” he added.
President Akufo-Addo stressed that his administration was determined to make healthcare accessible to every Ghanaian, pointing out that his decision to build more health facilities continues unabated.
Covid-19 Fight
The President said the government’s efforts and investments to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country was paying off, indicating that Ghana was among the few countries with low mortality rate so far.
He, however, stated that the fight against Covid-19 was still in progress. He, therefore, cautioned the public against becoming complacent, stressing the need for the people to adhere to all the health and safety protocols prescribed by health experts.
According to him, it is important for people to wash their hands regularly, wear face masks, wash their hands with soap under running water, use alcohol-based sanitizers, eat healthy food to boost their immune system and respect other health tips.
Teaching Hospitals
President Akufo-Addo said his government had realized that lack of lands for expansion remained the major bane for almost all the teaching hospitals in the country, including KATH, pledging to intervene to help resolve the anomaly soon.
First Lady’s Effort
The delay of completing the KATH MBU project after several years and the reported cases of mothers and babies deaths at KATH compelled First Lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo to intervene immediately to help stop unnecessary deaths and preserve human lives.
As part of her efforts, Mrs. Akufo-Addo, through her Rebecca Foundation, secured funding to build a mini MBU at KATH to save human lives, as her husband worked assiduously to secure full funding to complete the abandoned main MBU project at KATH.
The CEO of KATH, Oheneba Danso, during the function yesterday, publicly praised the First Lady for her positive works, pointing out that her intervention had also yielded dividends as recent statistics indicated that mothers and babies deaths at KATH had dropped.
Praises KCCR Staff
In a related development, the President and his team, including Health Minister Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, after the programme, paid a working visit to the Kumasi Centre for Collaborative Research (KCCR), a Covid-19 testing centre, where he saluted the staff for a good job done.
FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr.,Kumasi