Former Deputy minister accuses Hon. Yaw Osafo Marfo for inciting Ashantis against the NDC

The former Deputy Communications Minister under the John Mahama administration, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, has described the idea by Yaw Osafo Marfo, the senior minister that the
John Mahama government introduced the National Health Insurance Scheme capitation policy in the Ashanti Region just to endanger the health status of the people living in the region as unacceptable and highly flammable. 

“His statement to me doesn't make any sense at all. Obviously, he will not be able to produce any logical reason for that unfortunate comment,” Ofosu Kwakye reacted  New Day hosted by Bright Nana Amfoh today on TV3.

 Hon. Yaw Osafo Marfo during the Ashanti Regional NPP delegates’ conference in Kumasi over the weekend announced that the government has decided to terminate the  National Health Insurance Scheme capitation policy which has been piloted in the region since 2012. 

Ofosu Kwakye said on the program that: “If you want to say the National Democratic Congress only wanted to collapse the  National Health Insurance Scheme in Ashanti Region, it is very unfortunate to hear such a statement from someone like Osarfo Marfo.  It is unacceptable and a highly flammable statement because NHIS capitation policy was to check fraud in the operation of the scheme.

He also added that: “If the current government have any superior policy, they should introduce it for us to see but I want to let them know that there are no shot cuts to success in the business of governance”. 

The former  Minister also noted that “government should either take bold and hard decisions to make the scheme work or bow out because, in the United States, the Insurance has been in the system for more than six decades but aside that, they still face some challenges. So if there are issues in Ghana, it shouldn't come as a surprise to any of us. As a country, we need to desist from such unnecessary embellishments”. 

However, Hon. Afenyo-Markin, the Member of Parliament for the people of Effutu also said “the health insurance capitation policy is a good one but if you want to do a piloting program, why didn’t you choose more regions or districts for the piloting? Why do you move into a whole region like the Ashanti region?”

Hon. Afenyo-Markin said “if there has been a change of government and the new administration sees it prudent to review its policy, I think it is a good thing because there are legitimate concerns about the whole policy”.