Ex-UG Vice-Chancellor, 2 others accused of registering UG Hospital in their names

Former Deputy Health Minister, Rojo Mettle Nunoo, a former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ghana, Prof. Ernest Aryeetey and one Prof. Aaron Nii Lante Lawson have been accused of registering the newly built 650-bed University of Ghana Health Facility in their names.

According to a Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye-Gyedu, checks from the Registrar General’s Department indicates that the centre has been registered in the names of these three individuals under the name “University of Ghana Medical Centre”.

“It will shock Ghanaians to hear that a limited liability company such as the facility has been registered in the names of Rojo Mettle Nunoo, Prof. Ernest Ayittey and one Prof. Aaron Nii Lante Lawson in their respective names” he alleged.

Aboagye-Gyedu who is also MP for Bibiani Anhwiaso Bekwai disclosed this Monday on Adom FM’s Burning Issues programme hosted by Afia Pokua on the controversies surrounding the management of the facility.

“Are they managing the facility in their personal capacities or in the name of the University? Or are they managing it in the name of the Ministry of Health or Ghana Health Service?” the deputy minister quizzed.

His comment follows misunderstanding between management of the University of Ghana and the government over who should manage the health facility. A standoff between the Ministry of Health and authorities of the University has meant that use of the facility has stalled for over a year.

Already the Minority in Parliament has asked the Ministry of Health to cease attempts in annexing control over the newly built 650-bed facility and allow the facility to operate independently.

In a statement signed by the Minority Leader Haruna Iddrisu on Friday, 19 January 2018 cautioned the Ministry of Health to stop interfering with and to take its hands off the management and control of the affairs of the Hospital and allow the University of Ghana to take full control as stipulated by the agreement with the government.

But responding to such concerns, Aboagye-Gyedu said the government needs a total of $6 million dollars to complete the project which will see the completion of phase one of the projects.

“The matter recently came up at cabinet meeting which approval has been given to the health ministry to seek for about 48 to 50 million dollars which the $6 million of the amount will be used to operationalise the phase one of the project whiles the remaining one will used to commence phase II of the project” he revealed.

He also assured the public that the project will soon come on stream to assist health care delivery in the country.

Background

The $217million University of Ghana Medical Centre has been at the centre of a heated dispute between the Health Ministry and authorities of the school.

The loan for the construction of the facility was secured in 2012 and three years after completion of phase one, the John Mahama government in 2015 signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UG authorities, stating the ownership of the Centre.

In the agreement, the government is to hand-over management of the facility to the school, consigning the Health Ministry to a supervising role.

But the Medical Centre has been under lock and key since it was commissioned in January 2017 because of the dispute over the ownership.