The Executive Director of IMANI Ghana, Franklin Cudjoe has alleged that the dismissed CEO and board chairman of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital did not qualify to manage the hospital because they have questionable pasts.
“…the way the CEO himself was appointed was chaotic and in itself, it was wrong. These are guys who have very questionable pasts and I don’t know how they ended up being CEOs,” he said.
He remarked that whoever appointed them to take charge of Korle Bu “did a great disservice to the hospital.”
Mr. Cudjoe subsequently attributed the challenges and agitations at the hospital to the incompetence of the management.
The Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has been in the news over the past few months following agitations by the senior staff for the removal of the hospital’s acting CEO and the dissolution of the board.
The senior staff cited mismanagement of internally generated funds, and victimization of outspoken staff members.
The President last week appointed a new acting CEO which forced the dismissed acting CEO, Rev. Okpoti Botchway to revert to his position as a hospital board member.
But the board chairman, Eddie Annan and Rev. Botchway have both since resigned from the board.
The IMANI boss believes the entire management must be overhauled to get the hospital to run effectively.
He lamented over the prevailing practice in Ghana where critical institutions like the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital are run by “political animals.”
“Anytime you mix politics with the lives of people, then you really get the backlash…it is becoming too much,” he remarked.
Mr. Cudjoe asked: “What business did they have running the health institution? What business did they have? …given their past, the businesses they’ve run, there is no connection to managing health care facilities.”
He said he was convinced that if government cuts its subvention to Korle Bu, their challenges will be over because “there is a lot of money in Korle Bu that can be generated. Korle Bu is in such a sorry state right now.”
He further claimed that Eddie Annan and his team had their own “personal ambitions and that is the reason why all these conflicts are going on.”
Meanwhile, the Vice President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Kabonu wants the government to investigate the Korle Bu Board and management.
“Investigations must continue and let no one be shielded on this issue,” he said.
He supported calls for the dissolution of the entire board and management of the hospital since “they have lost control.”
Mr. Kabonu questioned the capacity of the newly appointed acting CEO, Dr. Gilbert Buckle to run the affairs of the hospital saying, “does he have that clout? Is he capable of making sure that the various departments work?”
According to him, the President should have reconstituted the Korle Bu Board before an appointment of a CEO was made.
“You should have put the board in place for the board to look out for the right person to appoint as a CEO because as at now, we have a dysfunctional board and yet, the President has appointed a CEO,” he opined.
Mr. Kabonu added that existing challenges at the hospital will persist if “the new board comes in and they don’t have an operational relationship with Dr. Buckle.”
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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