Opinions of Saturday, 3 September 2011

Columnist: Tawiah, Francis

Kwakye-Ofosu Is Wrongly Defending, Supporting And Misjudging.

Felix Kwakye-Ofosu Oil and Gas Analyst and member of the Communication Team of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC), justifiably defending the barbaric trash dismissal of Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng as Honorary Director of the National Cardiology thoracic Center at the Korle-bu Teaching Hospital.

To him, Prof. Frimpong Boateng is not the only qualified medical practitioner who can manage the center, and therefore beats his understanding that some group of people could make a hue and cry over the whole issue even when the heart surgeon had clearly passed his retirement age.

Let me ask him(Kwakye-Ofosu)some questions here: Even though there are so many ways of killing a cat, will it be the best way to kill your cat by throwing it alive into a hot burning fire? Do you have to maltreat some doctors because we have plenty of (equally) qualified doctors?

Professor Frimpong Boateng was not summarily relieved of his post but trashed out of his post. Summarily relieving someone (who has done nothing wrong) of his post, is taking a normal procedure by notifying the person prior to a stipulated date of vacation, meaning giving the person enough time to getting prepared to vacate his post due to a signed or known agreement or whatever tangible reason it might be, but not serving the person a termination letter today taking immediate effect within just some few hours to quit his post. That is in my opinion a Neanderthal mentality which must be avoided in our modern and democratic Ghana.

The letter directed Prof. Kwabena Frimpong Boateng on Thursday, August 25th by the Minister of Health, was to consider his appointment duly terminated with immediate effect.

I am happy that Felix Kwakye-Ofosu used the words ARBITRARY DISMISSAL in his following paragraph:

"However, medical staff at the Cardio Centre including specialists and other health workers suspended their services in protest against the arbitrary dismissal of the renowned heart surgeon by the government".

But Felix, strongly opines that the renowned surgeon has duly served his purpose and contributed his quota to the development of the cardiology center, pointing out that the center is a state-owned asset not one person's property. You are 100% right, it's a state-owned but not a state poultry farm where the state can do what ever he wants to his products.

Of course someone else must be opportune(d) to run the cardiology center despite the experience and knowledge of Prof. Frimpong Boateng, but the out going person too in the person of Prof. Boateng must be shown some limit of circumspect and be fairly treated.

The following statement and paragraph from Kwakye-Ofosu was absolutely childish, downhill and in-aristocratic:

He said ?If someone appoints you honorary director and he writes back to you that because of few issues you have been sacked, what is the crime in this? If someone appoints you, doesn't the person have the right to disappoint you? I think he has supported Ghana very well, he was very instrumental in the establishment the cardio center but of course he didn't do it alone but with the support of others but the center is for the government of Ghana, it is not a private property so nobody can say that because he is a world class cardio surgeon, he is the only one who can be the director in the cardiology center.?

I will personally say NDC in general was not being vindictive as the NPP claims but the Minister of health acted impertinently to a diligent person like Prof. Boateng.

What Kwakye-Ofosu is saying here again is not in line:

"He (Kwakye-Ofosu) further stated that the NPP has no moral authority to accuse the NDC of vindictiveness when they (NPP) illegally sacked Hodari Okai, and despite a court order that the government of the day reinstates him, they flouted that directive."

Does it mean, NPP did it so NDC must retaliate or what? This is no politics but rather antagonism.

We want a better Ghana but not "Do me, I do you" or "All-die-be-die" Ghana.

FRANCIS TAWIAH (Duisburg - Germany)