Cost of National Cathedral, others can build 15 district hospitals – Citi FM Editor

Kojo Akoto Boateng, Head of News at Citi FM and Citi TV, has reacted to plans by government to build 88 districts hospitals across the country with an assertion that the estimated cost of the National Cathedral and the New Parliamentary Chamber can build as many as fifteen district hospitals.

President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, in his eighth address on measures taken so by government to contain the novel coronavirus, promised to put up some 88 district hospitals, beginning this year in a bid to strengthen the health sector.

“We will, this year, begin constructing 88 hospitals in the districts without hospitals. It will mean 10 in Ashanti, nine in Volta, nine in Central, eight in Eastern, seven in Greater Accra, seven in Upper East, five in Northern, five in Oti, five in Upper West, five in Bono, four in Western North, four in Western, three in Ahafo, three in Savannah, two in Bono East and two in North-Easter regions.

“Each of them will be a quality, standard design 100-bed hospital with accommodation for doctors, nurses and other health workers and the intention is to complete them within a year.

“We’ll also put in place plans for the construction of six new regional hospitals in the six new regions and the rehabilitation of the Efia Nkwanta Hospital in Sekondi, which is the regional hospital of the Western Region,” Nana Akufo-Addo announced during his address.

But writing somewhat satirically on Twitter, Mr Akoto Boateng indicated that money earmarked for the National Cathedral and the New Parliamentary Chamber (plans for the construction of which have now stalled) could put up fifteen district hospitals while insisting that his statement was completely useless.

“This is completely useless piece of info. The cost of the National Cathedral (NC) + the proposed Parliament Chamber is about the cost of 15 district hospitals (DH). NC needs abt 14 acres.

DH needs 4 acres like I said, this is a completely useless fact,” he tweeted.

The President’s promise has been met with mixed reactions: some have praised him for his ambitious mission to strengthen the health sector while others have doubted the feasibility of the project given the limited resources available to the government.

source: mynewsgh.com