Koku Anyidoho applauds President Mahama for renaming UHAS after late President Mills

Samuel Koku Anyidoho, Founder and CEO of the MILLS Institute (Mindset, Integrity, Loyalty, Leadership, Service), has expressed heartfelt gratitude to former President John Dramani Mahama for renaming the University of Health and Allied Sciences (UHAS) in honour of the late President John Evans Atta-Mills.

The University, established in December 2011 through Parliamentary Act 828 by the late President Mills, was envisioned as a premier health-focused institution dedicated to research and community service. In 2012, President Mills personally cut the sod at the main campus in Sokode Lokoe, fulfilling his campaign promise to establish new public universities across Ghana.

“Volta Region also deserves a public university of repute and I am glad that today, that mission is being carried out with great joy,” President Mills had said during the ceremony.

Mr. Anyidoho, a long-time aide and loyalist of the late President, commended President Mahama for the decision to rename the institution in Mills’s honour. He described it as a deeply meaningful tribute to the man who appointed Mahama as his Vice President and whose legacy continues to shape Ghana’s political landscape.

“It has been a struggle to keep the legacy of President Atta-Mills alive and this decision by President Mahama brings great joy to my heart,” Koku said.

“I am honestly grateful to President Mahama for this decision to rename UHAS as the John Evans Atta-Mills University of Health and Allied Sciences and given the opportunity, I shall not hesitate to thank him personally,” he added.

“All my toil, sweat and prayers have yielded the desired results and my joy knows no bounds.”

Mr. Anyidoho also noted that the renaming of UHAS could foster healing and unity within the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the party under which Mills and Mahama both served as Presidents.

“This illuminating move by President Mahama has opened a new path for building new bridges within the NDC and for healthier ways of fostering sustainable unity because honoring our heroes is the surest way of keeping the NDC tradition alive.”

Quoting one of President Mills’s guiding principles, he added, “A nation that does not honour its heroes is a nation that is not worth dying for.” He stressed that the renaming is a significant gesture that would resonate with Ghanaians and supporters of Mills’s legacy.

The law establishing UHAS restricts the university from deviating from its original focus without parliamentary amendment. According to Anyidoho, this aligns with Mills’s original vision.

“President Atta-Mills’s vision for the University was for it to remain focused solely on Health and Allied Sciences and his soul will now rest in peace with this great Honour done his memory by President Mahama,” he stated.