Some Ghanaians have quashed the proposal for a new hospital and a chamber for Member of Parliaments (MPs), that was requested by the Minority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, during the inauguration of the Parliamentary Board.

They stated that parliamentarians need to prioritise relevant and pressing issues, such as schools under trees, inflation, among others, to benefit the ordinary Ghanaian, while fixing the current economic hurdles instead.

“There is nothing special about getting a new hospital when we have a lot of pressing issues to battle with in the country,” one of them said.

Reacting to the Minority Leader’s request for a new hospital on the AM Show on JoyNews, and monitored by GhanaWeb, some Ghanaians questioned the MP for trying to separate ordinary citizens from the political class.

“Are Ghanaians not worth quality health services. If the existing ones aren’t standard, fix it because we are all the same,” one other person said via a phone-in call.

A caller, named Abdul, from Madina, called for the immediate payments of GT Bank customers if the government had enough funds for the construction of a new hospital for MPs.

“Pay us, we are suffering in this country and all an MP requests is a hospital. Are we serious as a country?” he asked.

He also urged the government to improve on the existing hospitals to serve all Ghanaians, regardless of their status.

Earlier, the Minority Leader, Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, proposed for the establishment of a dedicated hospital for Members of Parliament (MPs) and the construction of a new parliamentary chamber.

His proposals was, however, immediately shot down by the Majority Leader and MP for Bawku Central, Mahama Ayariga.

The issue arose during the swearing-in of the Parliamentary Service Board on Monday, March 17, where Afenyo-Markin suggested that lawmakers and Parliament as a whole needed a specialised healthcare facility to cater to their medical needs.

"Mr. Speaker, there are two things that I hope for in this Ninth Parliament. One is a hospital for Parliament. If it does happen, according to your vision, it will be a great milestone. We are a political class, and our health issues must be known within certain confines. Because of confidentially issues, people travel abroad at great costs for medical support. I believe if we are able to deal with this, it will help,”," he explained.

He further revived the debate on the need for a new parliamentary chamber, arguing that both initiatives were necessary to improve the working conditions of MPs.

However, Mahama Ayariga rejected the proposals, citing Ghana’s struggling economy as a reason such projects would be unjustifiable at this time.

He insisted that given the pressing economic challenges facing the country, a new chamber and a hospital for MPs were not priorities.

VA/AE

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