Kintampo Hospital to get a doctor
Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - The Speaker, Mr Peter Ala Adjetey on Thursday aborted a debate on the Minority's motion urging the government to reduce the price of the petroleum products once the world market price had steadily fallen from 29 dollars in March to the current price of about 17 dollars per barrel.
Mr Adjetey quoting parliamentary authorities said although he had admitted the original motion for debate it did not mean that if his attention were drawn to the mistake he could not rule against it.
He said by law Parliament could not rescind its decision on a particular or a specific issue if that issue had been dealt with during the same session.
He thus upheld the point of order Captain Nkrabea Effah-Dartey, Deputy Minister for Local Government and MP for Berekum, raised on the motion that it was wrong for the House to debate the topic.
Capt Effah-Dartey held that if the debate was allowed it would be contrary to Standing Order 93 (3) of the House, which did not allow an issue to be brought back to the House when it was dealt with within a session.
He said Parliament in approving the Mid-Year Budget Review in November had by omnibus dealt with what government should do when there was a windfall in the prices of oil.
The review said any excess money accruing from the sale of petroleum products should be used to service Tema Oil Refinery's (TOR) debt of one trillion cedis.
The motion, which was sponsored by Mr Abraham Kofi Asante, the Minority Spokesman on Energy, had sought for the application of the government's petroleum pricing formula, which provided automatic adjustment in the ex-pump price of petroleum products anytime the price of the commodity went up or down on the world market without anyone's interference.
Mr Doe Adjaho, the Minority Chief Whip, in accepting the ruling quoted Napoleon Bonaparte's: "He who fights and runs away lives to fight another day." He said the Minority would come back with a motion during the next meeting that was about three weeks away.
Replying, the Speaker said he held a contrary understanding of fighting and running away because by the time that one might come back one might realise that there was no longer any fight. This drew laughter from the House.
GRi.../
Send your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - The Minister of Defence, Dr Kwame Addo-Kufuor on Thursday said the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) was the nucleus of the Emergency Relief Unit (ERU) established in line with accepted practice following a Cabinet decision after the May 9 stadium disaster.
He said other organisations such as the Police, Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Prison Service and Immigration Services as well as Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO),
Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) and School Cadet Corps formed part of the ERU.
He told Parliament that 900 of the Cadet Corps had been trained in first aid delivery to accident victims and other lives threatening emergencies.
Dr Addo-Kufuor, who was answering Mr Joseph Darko-Mensah, NPP-Okaikoi North, who wanted to know the success or otherwise of the GAF emergency services and reforestation programme said there were two helicopters and 10 ambulances at the disposal of the ERU.
He said in a general emergency situation such as happened at the Accra Sport Stadium the Unit "would be rapidly deplored to evacuate casualties to the 37 Military Hospital and other health institutions.
The ambulance service was also available to the public for hiring at a fee of 30,000 cedis, the Minister said, adding that if logistics support were made available to the Unit the facility would be extended to other regional capitals.
On the agro-forestry project, Dr Addo-Kufuor said 13 soldiers on UNIFIL operations have been trained and more would be trained to help the Armed Forces in checking the southwards drift of the Sahara Desert.
"They would also help restore the tree cover of our vastly depleted eco-system and finally contribute to making the Accra plans the bread basket of Ghana."
Dr Addo-Kufuor said the agro-forestry project, which was launched at Michel Camp, Tema in September this year had so far seen the planting of 200,000 seedlings of mangoes, acacia, eucalyptus and Luciana.
He said about 40 hectares would be planted with mangoes, cashew and trees during the next year main crop season.
GRi.../
Send your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Accra (Greater Accra) 14 December 2001 - The Ministry of Health is making serious arrangements to post a doctor to Kintampo Hospital as well as other hospitals where there is none.
Mr Moses Dani Baah, Deputy Minister of Health, told Parliament on Thursday that the ministry was facing acute shortage of doctors in the country with the current ratio of one doctor to 16,800 people.
He said it was unfortunate that out of the about 125 doctors produced annually from the three medical schools and from training abroad, only 50 per cent were in the country.
He was answering Mr Yaw Effah-Baafi, NDC-Kintampo, who wanted to know when a doctor would be posted to the Kintampo District Hospital where there was none.
Mr Dani Baah said so critical was the shortage of doctors in the country that the government entered into an agreement with Cuba to fill in the gap particularly in the deprived rural areas.
He said currently there were about 154 Cuban doctors working in various hospitals in the country. In another development, Captain Nkrabea Effah-Dartey (rtd) said a new refuse dumping site was being created at Oblogo, near Accra to replace the one at Gbawe, which had only three weeks to close down.
This was in an answer to a question Mr Ernest Armah, NDC-Ga South, asked as to why the Waste Management Department of Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) continued dumping refuse at Djaman in contravention of directives of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Capt Effah-Dartey said measures had been put in place to control any environmental hazards and the EPA was daily monitoring the situation.
GRi.../
Send your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com