The Minority in Parliament has criticised the government over what it describes as a duplication of existing policy interventions, following the launch of a new healthcare initiative by President John Dramani Mahama.
On Wednesday, April 15, President Mahama officially unveiled the Free Primary Healthcare programme, a flagship policy aimed at expanding access to essential health services across Ghana, particularly targeting underserved and vulnerable communities. The initiative is expected to improve early detection of diseases and enhance preventive healthcare delivery nationwide.
However, the policy has drawn sharp criticism from the Minority, who argue that the programme mirrors interventions introduced under the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administrations.
Speaking in an interview with Citi News, the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Health Committee, Dr. Nana Ayew Afriyie, accused the government of repackaging existing policies without acknowledging their origin.
According to him, key elements of the newly launched programme bear striking similarities to initiatives previously rolled out by the NPP, particularly in the area of annual health checks and access to healthcare services using the Ghana Card..
“During the launch, you would see that every person can access it using a Ghana Card and must be 18 years old or older. Under the NPP, it was the same, and it is for all Ghanaians. You can Google the Pentecost Church of Ghana headquarters, the publication on annual health checks introduced by the NPP government, which is on their site, and it details exactly what John Dramani Mahama was saying yesterday.
“Exactly, word for word, the institutions are there. You have only changed the political faces, and now you want to repackage it without giving reference and recognition to those who initiated it. So how would somebody also recognise anything you have added to it in future?”
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