Health Minister Justifies Interdiction Of Ridge Hospital Admin

The removal of former Medical Director of the Greater Accra Regional (Ridge) Hospital, Dr. Thomas Anaba, was due to the fact that he was on secondment there, Health Minister, Kwaku Agyemang- Manu has said.

He explained that Dr. Anaba was only asked to resume his permanent duty at the University of Development Studies (UDS) Hospital from where he came to Ridge on secondment.

Mr. Agyemang-Manu said this when he appeared before Parliament to respond to a question posed by Member of Parliament for Wa West Constituency, Joseph Yieleh Chireh, seeking answers on why the Medical Director was removed from office.

According to the Minister, when the first phase of the Ridge Hospital redevelopment project was completed and handed over to the Ghana Health Service, a permanent Chief Executive Officer was needed to manage the facility, hence the decision to replace Anaba, who was not hired as a permanent staff.

‘’On completion of the Phase I of the redevelopment of the hospital and the subsequent handing over of the facility to the Ghana Health Service, it was realized that the Contractor had to hand over to a permanent Ghana Health Service staff as CEO for obvious reasons’’ he justified.

He revealed that Dr. Anaba had all these while failed to cede relationship with UDS and continued to draw salary from both the UDS and Ridge hospitals.

Responding to Minority Chief Whip, Mohammed Muntaka’s assertion that the interdicted Medical Officer went through a recruitment process before securing a four-year contract at the Ridge Hospital and therefore cannot be said to be on secondment, the Minister maintained that, Dr Anaba was on secondment and could be recalled anytime by UDS hence the ministry’s decision to avoid the risk of maintaining him at the Ridge facility.

Source: Christian Kpesese/ thePublisher