[ 2017-05-23 ]

Former Health Minister, Alex Segbefia

Alex Segbefia urges prosecution of culprits in Central Medical Stores fire
Former Health Minister, Alex Segbefia is charging
the President Akufo-Addo government to bring a
closure to the fire incident at the Central
Medical Stores by ensuring the prosecution of
perpetrators.

Ghana lost its main drugs and medical supplies
depot on January 13, 2015, but government is yet
to prosecute some 12 persons found culpable
following investigations into the fire that razed
the Tema Central Medical Stores (CMS).
The uninsured CMS which contained every
conceivable drug imported into the country
including drugs for deadly diseases such as
HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and Ebola was
estimated to be over GHS263million.

The 12 were officers of the CMS identified by
National Security as being part of a network
responsible for the systemic theft of large
quantities of medical supplies and irregularities
in the procurement and allocations to health
institutions.

A popular view is that the fire was a sinister
work of some officials in Ghana’s medical supply
chain who wanted to prevent exposure after some
dubious procurement deals.

The heads of the Malaria Control Programme were
suspected of having a hand in the fire and were
subsequently interdicted with the Bureau of
National Investigations.

A year after the incident, the then
Attorney-General, Marietta Brew-Appiah Oppong
revealed the CMS was intentionally set on fire.

"To destroy evidence of theft, massive fraud and
widespread irregularities in the distribution and
supply of medical supplies involving senior
management and junior staff, it is believed Samuel
Dogbe was paid to set the fire in order to destroy
the evidence," she said.

Mr Dogbe, a labourer at the Central Medical
Stores, the suspected arsonist was at the time on
the run. His whereabouts are still yet to be
known.

The report cited some individuals as being part of
a network at Stores responsible for the systemic
theft of medical supplies and recommended their
prosecution.

They are Peter Ekow Gyimah, Former Head of CMS;
Alhaji Yusif Inua, Member of the Interim
Management Committee of the CMS; Iddrisu
Abdul-Karim, Acting Head of the CMS; Gifty Esi
Mankartha, Principal Pharmacist/Warehouse
Manager.

The other are Zeboat Doh, Warehouse Manager;
Ibrahim Laryeah Amartey, Line Warehouse
Manager/General Pharmaceuticals Unit; Kwame Foli,
Warehouse Manager and Mathias Senaya, Warehouse
Manager/General Pharmaceuticals.

Victoria Anning, Senior Supply Officer/Project
Stores; Abdul Karim, James Benjamin Annan,
Pharmacist/System Analyst and Peter Atiba Addah,
Storekeeper are also part of those to be
prosecuted.

As the issue comes up for discussion again, Mr
Segbefia assured that an audit should be
undertaken to ensure interdictions and
prosecutions.

He told Joy News' Elton John Brobbey when the
information first came to the then A-G, she did
not have enough information to prosecute.

"We only have citings of the reports and not the
statements by those involved, so as far as I am
concerned the CID or National Security based on
the evidence they have should produce enough to
give it to the Attorney General to mount a
prosecution," he said.

According to him, although Mr Dogbe is at large,
there are areas which can be explored by the
investigating authorities to know the motive
behind the burning of the CMS, which he believes
will give some clues.

He said the burning of the CMS gave Ghana such a
bad image and he is, therefore, appealing to
anyone who knows anything to volunteer information
for the perpetrators to be prosecuted.

The new government has been criticised by the US
Ambassador, Robert Johnson for failing to act
decisively to bring closure to the fire incident,
a situation he said, “has dealt a blow to our
ability to support public health in Ghana.”

Some of the burnt drugs were medical supply worth
$7 million donated by the American government.

But current Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang Manu
has assured a forensic audit will soon be
conducted into the report to determine the next
step government ought to take.

However checks by JOYNEWS reveal efforts by
government to prosecute those cited in the report
may hit a snag as the Attorney General’s
Department failed to get the needed evidence
required to prosecute those involved.

Source - Myjoyonline.com

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