The Director of Communications of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has called on the government to prioritise the completion and operationalisation of the Afari Military Hospital in the Ashanti Region, arguing that only a small portion of the project remains unfinished.
According to Mr Ahiagbah, the hospital was about 98 per cent complete when the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration left office on January 7, 2025, with the outstanding works estimated to require approximately $500,000 to complete.
He said committing the necessary resources to finish the remaining work would allow the facility to begin operations and strengthen healthcare delivery in the Ashanti Region and beyond.
“All the current government needs to do is make a two per cent effort, roughly $500,000, to finish the job and put the hospital to use,” he stated.
Mr Ahiagbah made the remarks in a statement addressing recent public discussions surrounding the status of the project. He urged stakeholders to focus on facts when assessing national infrastructure projects and cautioned against what he described as politically motivated narratives.
“The Ghanaian people deserve facts, not propaganda,” he said.
Providing details on the progress of the project, Mr Ahiagbah noted that when the NPP assumed office in 2017, the hospital was estimated to be about 40 per cent complete. He said significant progress was made over the following years, bringing the project to 98 per cent completion by January 2025.
According to him, civil works had reached 97.5 per cent completion, while architectural works stood at 87 per cent. Road construction was about 80 per cent complete, with landscaping works reaching 77 per cent.
His comments come in response to recent public remarks by former Assin Central Member of Parliament, Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, regarding the status of the hospital project.
Located at Sewua near Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, the Afari Military Hospital is one of Ghana’s flagship military healthcare projects. The facility is intended to provide specialised medical services for both military personnel and civilians.
The project traces its origins to the administration of former President John Agyekum Kufuor, during which the concept was developed. Construction officially began in March 2014 under the first administration of President John Dramani Mahama, with the facility initially expected to be completed in 2016.