Agenda 111: Don’t doubt government, let's commit to it – Afenyo-Markin

The Deputy Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin , has urged Ghanaians must have faith in government's agenda 111 hospitals project to improve the healthcare situation in the country.

The Effutu lawmaker said Ghanaians who stands to benefit the government's ambitious project must commit to it irrespective of one political colour.

According to him, government has produced documents to the effect that not less than 55 hospital projects that were at various levels of completion have been completed and commissioned without a shred of challenge.

He nonetheless pointed out that there are still some projects yet to be completed and thus the government has stated through the Health Ministry to have them completed before the end of its tenure.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Dzifa Bampoh on 3FM’s First Take, Mr Afenyo-Markin said the impression should not be created that the government has abandoned the existing uncompleted projects and is jumping onto new ones.

Asked if it was not because of the taunting by the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) that if it was not for the hospitals built by the erstwhile Mahama administration that has served a major purpose especially in the pandemic times government won’t see the need to make its own mark, he said a government has the responsibility to put its own mark on the national space.

Mr Afenyo-Markin was commenting on the back of the backlash from a cross-section of Ghanaians who are questioning the government’s commitment to fulfilling the promise of constructing 111 hospitals across the country.

“I don’t want to be a pessimist and I don’t want people to doubt the commitment of government in improving infrastructure in the health sector. Let us together commit to it”, he said.

President Akufo-Addo has described the Agenda 111 initiative as the nation’s biggest ever investment in the health sector.

He said he is happy that this project is taking place during his tenure.

Delivering a speech during the sod cutting in the Ashanti region on Tuesday August 17, he said “I am glad that the biggest ever investment in the nation’s healthcare is being made. We have met this morning because of the ravages of Covid-19 which has affected every country on the planet. For us in Ghana not only has the pandemic disrupted our daily lives, but it has also exposed the deficiencies with our healthcare system because of the years of under investment and neglect.”

Each of the hospitals will cost $16.88 million, with $12.88 million being used for the construction of the hospitals and $4 million for medical equipment.

President Akufo-Addo has said the hospitals will be completed within 18 months.