Minority sceptical about govt’s new assurance on La General hospital

The Minority in Parliament has expressed scepticism about the government’s ability to complete the La General Hospital project.

During the presentation of the 2024 Budget in Parliament on Wednesday, November 15, 2023, Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta announced that the contractor for the stalled health project would resume work next week.

This announcement followed assurances from Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang Manu that the government had secured €50 million locally to fund the reconstruction of the La General Hospital.

However, Minority Chief Whip, Governs Agbodza, told journalists that the government would not be able to fully fund the project to completion.

“I am extremely angry that the Finance Minister did not say anything about the suspension of the Bank of Ghana headquarters and pumping that money into the La General Hospital. Now that they are claiming the La General Hospital will cost 50 million Euros, we could have taken part of the 250 million dollars meant for the BoG head office and injected it into the completion of the La General Hospital”.

“We all know that when they say a project is under Government of Ghana support, it means it’s under life support. I don’t foresee the government having 50 million Euros easily to pump into that project,” he said.

Agbodza also criticized the government’s failure to allocate funds for coastal defense measures in the budget.

The government had announced a GH¢220 million package to support persons displaced by the Akosombo dam spillage and flood-related efforts.

“What is GH¢220 million supposed to do? Is it supposed to rebuild the school, the hospitals, resettlement, teachers, key workers who have been displaced, or repair roads? What is this supposed to do? That money is really inadequate to do anything. I wish we could have a more comprehensive discussion about this.”