The Minister for Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu has assured that work on the demolished La General hospital will commence soon.
The Minister did not provide any specific timeline for the commencement of the project but revealed that the project cost has been revised from €68 million to €50 million.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament on Tuesday on the progress of the demolished hospital, Mr Manu stated that the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta has identified a financing source for the project.
“Mr Speaker, at the 37th session of cabinet, the president directed the Minister of Trade and Industry, Health and Finance to find alternative sources of funding to recommence the projects.
“Through the efforts of the three-man committee, the Minister for Finance has now identified funds locally to continue the projects with the same civil works scope, but a reduced price of 50 million euros,” he said.
According to the Health Minister, contractors have resubmitted the Advanced Proposition Guarantee to the Ministry of Health, which has been processed to the Ministry of Finance for payments.
He clarified that the project consultants and the ministry’s technical team have met with the contractors to draw up a roadmap for the continuation of the projects once the funds are received.
“The contractor indicates that once the funds hit the accounts, they will remobilise the sites within one week. Mr. Speaker, it’s unfortunate I couldn’t get some of these things shown on the video, but there are materials on site worth over $8 million that the contractor has put there to recommend work with.
“Now we have all these materials there, there are very few skeleton staff on the site, and now that they are going to get back to sites, we believe the project will move very quickly,” the Health Minister assured.
Mr Manu said parties involved in the contract have shown willingness and commitment to work, emphasising that the project will be carried out in earnest and completed within the 24-month duration.
But the National Democratic Congress Member of Parliament (MP) for La Dadekotopon, Rita Odoley Sowah is not enthused.
According to her, the revision of the cost of the project will mean a significant downscaling of the scope of the work.
“The initial contract sum for the project was 68 million euros, and now they have scaled it down to 50 million euros so does it mean that the drawings they showed to the good people of La Dadekotopon, they are going to bring the drawings to another level.”
“Mr. Speaker, the lies have been too many, and as we speak now, I want the Honourable Minister for Health to tell the good people of Ghana and to tell the good people of Dadekotopon as and when the project is actually going to start,” the La Dadekotopon MP asked.
Mrs Sowah expressed doubts about the kind of project the government will put up, emphasising that the initial €68 million could have built a better facility as compared to the €50 million.
“Mr. Speaker, we need a health facility and we want the facility that they promised the good people of Dadekotopon that they will build for us.”
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