The National Coordinator of the District Roads Improvement Programme (DRIP), Nii Lante Vanderpuye, has urged the government and stakeholders to strengthen security systems across state institutions following the recent assault incident at the Ridge Hospital in Accra.
According to him, the attack, which saw perpetrators storm the hospital premises with motorbikes and allegedly assaulted a nurse on duty , could have been prevented had the facility maintained a tighter security regime.
“How did the young man and his people enter the premises at the first place? There should be a security post, they rode motorbikes into the system, how did they get in there?” he wondered on Channel One TV on Thursday, August 28.
He cautioned that weak security arrangements not only endanger lives but also expose institutions to risks that could cripple their operations.
“This is a health institution and even the winds that blow into the health institution could have effect on the health situation of patients on admission.”
Mr Vanderpuye drew comparisons with other facilities, noting that such incidents would be unlikely at the University of Ghana Medical Centre due to its robust security. “If you go to the University of Ghana Medical Centre, I don’t think (anyone) could have done what happened because the facility looked secured.”
By contrast, he pointed to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital as another vulnerable site where poor security allows unrestricted entry. “Look, Korle Bu, I can easily drive into Korle Bu. If you use the back gate, there is a security post there, look somebody can just drive in and blow the whole Korle Bu apart.”
He warned that the lapses could provide opportunities for terrorists to launch attacks, “A terrorist can do that easily.”
He urged the nation to prioritise investments in private security, drawing lessons from embassies in the country which heavily rely on private firms. “If you go outside the country, it is not the state securities that provide security for such institutions, private security. Why are the embassies in Accra not using state security? So we can still have private security systems that are competent enough to prevent people from breaking down the system we provided to offer us the things we need.”