Month: April 2025

The Minority in Parliament has demanded the reinstatement of the sacked Chief Executive Officer of the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH), Dr. Adam Atiku.

 A press release from the Minority Caucus on the Health Committee on Wednesday, 23rd April 2025 said the dismissal of the CEO was unlawful as the Minister is not clothed with such powers to remove the CEO of a teaching hospital.

Thus, the action of the Health Minister, Kwabena Mintah Akando was carried out without recourse to due process and is a matter that raises serious constitutional, administrative, and governance concerns.

“Furthermore, Section 34(7) of the parent Act 525 stipulates that the removal of a member of a Teaching Hospital Board. which includes the CEO. must be affected by  the President in consultation with the Council of State. The procedure adopted by the Minister thus violates the statutory safeguards surrounding appointments and removals at this level of public administration”.

They noted that the Minister’s own admission that the dismissal is not solely based on the recent unfortunate death of a patient at the Hospital, but rather an exercise of power and the “appointing authority owes nobody any explanation is not only authoritarian but diametrically opposed to the principles of administrative justice, accountability, and the rule of law.

The development they said thus require the reinstatement of the governing legal framework for the administration of Teaching Hospitals in Ghana. Section 37(1)(e) of the Ghana Health Service and Teaching Hospitals (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 1009). provides that the Chief Executive Officer of a teaching hospital shall be the Chief Administrator and a member of the Hospital’s Governing Board. The law does not confer unilateral power on the Minister of Health to dismiss the CEO of a teaching hospital, let alone in the manner and under the circumstances now in issue.

The Minority asserts that the Minister’s actions during his surprise visit to the Tamale Teaching Hospital where he was engaged in a heated verbal exchange with some staff were not only unlawful but emotionally charged and rash resulting from the deplorable state of the facility and some essential equipment including ventilators, diagnostic and sterilisation machinery, and MRI scanning systems coupled with the recent death of a patient, reportedly due to the absence of a working ventilator.

The Minority Caucus charged health professional bodies including the Ghana Medical Association, the Giana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, the Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana, the Health Services Workers Union, among others to rise in the defence of due process and institutional integrity.

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As the twelve member states of the Economic Community of West Africa states (ECOWAS) gather for a two day extraordinary Council session of Foreign and Finance Minister in the capital of Ghana Accra on the contingency plan relating to the withdrawal of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso (Alliance for Sahel States AES), Chair of the Council of Ministers Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in his open remarks on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, assured his colleagues that the sub-regional bloc would over come and come out stronger.

Mr. Tuggar assured that the Community would continue to engage the AES on a platform of resolving its regional problems and it’s our responsibility to maintain the ECOWAS legacy handed over to us and pass it on to the next generation stronger cohesive.

“This is not the first time the unity of ECOWAS has been tested and would not be the last; let us not be distracted by the event; let us focus on the processes and strategies with longer term benefit to all member states and let us devote time for a constructive deliberations to have meaningful outcomes at the end of our engagement”.

And it’s expected that the Commission would present to them a memorandum of contingency plan for discussion the modality of disengagement of the three states and the effect of stopping programmes in the existing countries from ECOWAS and they would also consider the effect of suspended programmes.

As well as the emerging challenges of free movement of people goods and services and the council would also receive a memorandum on the relocation of ECOWAS institutions and agencies that are located in the three Sahel states.

He disclosed that the council is expected to come up with solutions to any advert effects that come out from the exit of the three countries. “It was never our wish that a day like this would come where ministers would gather to plan on the depatcher of some member states from our community bloc. But with the unfortunate withdrawal of the three countries to take decisions to suit the current realities as it’s a question of choice and exercise of sovereignty, we have no choice but to accept the wishes of the three Sahel states. This is not the outcome we sought as we look ahead”.

He said their purpose as policy makers is to translate this into a positive opportunity for renewal and not limitation; strengthen but stable further our effort to build a common identity and democratic values into an ever more effective discipline and reliable ECOWAS as they move on to see more value in regional integration.

West Africa, remains the most integrated region we should rededicate ourselves to the building on our success despite the challenges faced by the bloc in recent times, he added.

Kwaku Sakyi-Danso/Ghanamps.com

The Minority has descended heavily the President of the Republic, H.E John Dramani Mahama over his decision to suspend the beleaguered Chief Justice Getrude Torkornoo.

The Minority described the move as ‘tyranny’ and a deviation from good governance; and also contends that the decision is a politically motivated witch-hunt aimed at controlling the Judiciary.

The Chief Justice is facing removal from office after three petitions were submitted to the President.

Following from that the President in line with Article 146(6) of the 1992 Constitution and in consultation with the Council of State, sets the stage for a formal inquiry into the petitions after a prima facie case was established in relation to the three petitions calling for the Chief Justice’s removal from office.

A five member committee including 1. Justice Gabriel Scott Pwamang Justice of the supreme court chairman
2. Justice Samuel Kwame Adibu-Asiedu, Justice of the Supreme Court – Member
3. Daniel Yaw Domelevo (Former Auditor-General) – Member
4. Major Flora Bazwaanura Dalugo (Ghana Armed Forces) – Member
5. Professor James Sefah Dzisah (Associate Professor, University of Ghana) – Member.” has thus been constituted under Article 146(6) to investigate the matter.

But the Minority in a press release on April 22, 2025, thinks the entire process is ill-motivated and a pattern of political persecution and misuse of state institutions to intimidate opponents.

“The decision by President John Dramani Mahama to suspend Her Ladyship Chief Justice Gertrude Araba Esaaba Sackey Torkornoo under the purported authority of Article 146 of the 1992 Constitution, is nothing short of a brazen judicial coup, a reckless abuse of Executive power, and a direct assault on the independence of Ghana’s Judiciary.

“This move, taken while legitimate legal challenges are pending before the Supreme Court, reeks of intolerable political vendetta, Judicial intimidation, and a calculated attempt to pack the courts with NDC-sympathetic justices – as openly promised by President Mahama in Akosombo in 2023.”

The Minority thus calls for reinstatement of the Chief Justice pending the Supreme Court’s determination of the pending legal challenges.

“A halt to all removal proceedings until the judiciary has conclusively ruled on the constitutionality of the process”.

They warned that failure to halt the process and reinstate the Chief Justice will warrant legal and public resistance.

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The Chief Executive Officer of the Tamale Teaching Hospital (TTH) Dr. Adam Atiku has been sacked by President John Dramani Mahama following reports of alleged negligence that led to the recent death of a patient at the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Ward.

The decision comes amid growing concerns about the deteriorating state of healthcare delivery at the facility, where essential medical equipment are reportedly non-functional.

In response to the situation, Minister for Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, paid an unannounced visit to the hospital on Tuesday, April 22, 2025 as part of a broader effort to assess the challenges facing healthcare delivery in the Northern Region.

Speaking during the visit, the Minister expressed serious concerns over the number of idle medical machines, despite payments being made to suppliers.

He also highlighted the impact of the ongoing water crisis in Tamale on hospital operations, describing it as a broader regional issue that requires urgent presidential intervention.

Addressing plans to resolve the hospital’s equipment issues, Mr. Akandoh said any action from the Ministry would be informed by the priorities set by hospital management.

He urged residents to continue using the hospital’s services, assuring them of improved healthcare delivery.
“When we finish with them, we will all think through it, because I cannot do it all alone, I have to involve them, and we are thinking through it together.

Everybody should remain calm and let us continue to patronise the facility,” he stated.

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The President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama has announced one thousand (1000) scholarship opportunity to tertiary students from the ECOWAS sub-region to study in universities in Ghana.

The gesture, according to President John Mahama who disclosed this at the launch of the Golden Jubilee Anniversary of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in Accra on Tuesday, April 22, 2025, is beyond strengthening bonds – “this is not just a gesture, it is an act of solidarity; it is a bridge to our future, where our young people would grow up seeing each other not as foreigners but as partners”.

He said the anniversary launch is not just a celebration but a solemn moment of reflection on our collective journey and an invitation to renew our commitment to the principles that have bound us together for half a century in unity peace and regional integration and above all diplomacy as our guiding compass.

The President of Ghana affirmed that the founding fathers of ECOWAS chose the path of cooperation over competition and rivalry; stating that their vision was clear – one to pursue development not as isolated nations, but as a united community.

This, he noted, has ensured that ECOWAS has grown into becoming key diplomatic and political force in Africa. Through consistent engagement, dialogue and mediation, our community has earned a reputation as a trusted arbiter in conflict prevention and resolution as evident in Liberia, Sierra Leone, the Gambia, as well as preventing electoral violence in Togo, and Ivory Coast. “We must not take this legacy lightly; it is one we must protect; it is one we must deepen and refine in the face of new and emerging challenges”.

He bemoaned the growing insecurity in the sub-region particularly violent extremism, political instability, economic disparities and climate vulnerabilities in the Sahel region; stating that in moments like these, diplomacy and solidarity must remain the first and strongest line of defense.

President Mahama described as regrettable the decision by Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso to withdraw from ECOWAS; but calls for continuous engagement with the Sahel countries, adding that unity, however difficult remains the best pack to share prosperity and regional stability.

“Ghana stands ready to serve as a bridge to help re-knit the fabrics of African unity through sustained dialogues, patient diplomacy, and principled negotiations”.

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President of the Economic Community of West African State (EWCOWAS) Commission, Dr. Omar Alieu Touray has bemoaned the low intra- community trade in the sub-region.

Speaking at the launch of the 50th Anniversary of ECOWAS in Accra on Tuesday, he said one of the areas of reflection as ECOWAS marks it’s Golden Jubilee is how to improve trade among member states.

He stated that despite being a customs unit, intra-community trade stands at 12 percent, which is considerably low compared to trade among European Union and other countries.

He contends therefore that to resolve this low intra-community trade among the ECOWAS member states, it behoves on the bloc to pay attention to addressing infrastructure and energy deficit as well as trade barriers.

But most significantly, there is the need to address supply side constraints by raising productivity in the various countries.

Dr. Touray stated that to increase productivity requires the ability to attract investors locally and internationally.

The President of the ECOWAS Commission also affirmed that ECOWAS’ market of 400 million dollars is a potential mileage to investors. “This, once again underlines the importance of regional integration and few meaningful investors are attracted by the small size of our individual domestic markets”.

Mr Toure urged the region to invest in peace and security; stating that the terrorist menace that constitutes a key basis for insecurity in the region knows no borders, thus making security collaboration in the region imperative.

To this end, he commended President John Dramani Mahama of Ghana, President Faure Gnassingbe of Togo, and the Chair of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of States and Government, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria for their efforts at reconciliation and fostering collaboration between ECOWAS and members of the Sahel States.

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