Takoradi, July 17, GNA- Some staff members of the Association of Mutual Health Insurance Scheme, under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), have called for the removal of the Mr. Ras Boateng, Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) from office.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview on Wednesday, Mr. Kingsley Kwabena Bobieh, General Secretary of the Association, alleged that the CEO had violated the NHIS law by establishing regional offices nationwide and filing them with "cronies and other close friends without advertising the vacant positions". Mr. Bobieh said the decision was taken after a council meeting held in Kumasi on July 12, and this meeting was attended by all regional representatives of the various schemes, adding, the Association was duly registered in 2005 with the Registrar's General Department. He said Act 650 of 2003 and the LI 1809 of 2004 established the NHIS, and decentralised it, but the CEO was attempting to centralise it. He said the new five year development plan introduced by Mr. Boateng has no room for the human resource development of the staff of the various schemes and this could affect the future of the scheme. Mr. Bobieh alleged that the focus of the regional offices is to scrap the various boards and replace it with the managers and this could centralise the various schemes instead of the present decentralised system.

He said the 16-paged petition dated June 19 sent to the Ministry of Health has not been replied to, though a reminder has been sent. Mr. Bobieh alleged that the President John A. Kufuor has also been petitioned on July 14 this year and members were awaiting a response. In a related development, Mr. Ibrahim Wiredu, the Corporate Affairs Manager of the NHIA in an interview with the GNA said the management of the NHIA would meet the leadership of management to find an amicably solution to their concerns.

He said the Scheme should not suffer at the expense of the workers, neither should the workers suffer, and so everything will be done to rectify the situation. He however assured that nobody would be victimised and urged the leadership to be free to meet them and talk about their grievances. Mr. Reinhard Okyere, Western Regional Manager of the NHIA said he was surprised about the latest development since "many of the scheme managers did not know about anything of that nature when we met in Takoradi on Tuesday.