Two young men are in the custody of the Kasoa Ofaakor Jei River Police for allegedly stealing iron rods from the Agenda 111 hospital project site at Ofaakor in the Awutu Senya East Municipality of the Central Region.

The police are pursuing a third suspect who narrowly escaped and is currently on the run.

Upon their arrest, 31 pieces of 18-millimetre iron rods were found in a tricycle they were using to cart the stolen items. During interrogation, they allegedly admitted to the crime, explaining that it was their second time stealing iron rods from the site.

The three were said to have arrived at the site with the tricycle but were intercepted by security men at the Odupong Ofaakor Senior High School.

One of the security men, Emmanuel Sakyi, told Adom News’ Kofi Adjei that when they confronted the suspects, they admitted to stealing the iron rods from the project site. An attempt to arrest them led to a long chase.

He said their shouts of “thief, thief” attracted the help of some community members who assisted in arresting two of the suspects, while one managed to escape.

The police at the Ofaakor Jei River station are currently holding the two arrested suspects.

Meanwhile, the Municipal Chief Executive of the Awutu Senya East Assembly, Mr Seth Banini, has visited the scene and the project site, where he condemned the actions of the suspects.

He cautioned the youth in Kasoa to desist from such acts that tarnish the area’s reputation.

Mr Banini reiterated his commitment to creating job opportunities for the youth and encouraged them to engage in productive ventures to better themselves and contribute positively to the community.

The Agenda 111 project, initiated by the Government of Ghana during the presidency of Nana Akufo-Addo, aims to ensure equitable access to quality healthcare by constructing hospitals in every district and region, thereby advancing universal health coverage and supporting the attainment of SDG 3.

The project includes the design, construction, and commissioning of 101 district hospitals, seven regional hospitals, two psychiatric hospitals, and the redevelopment of existing facilities, with all hospitals featuring staff accommodation and a model for accelerated health infrastructure development.

With not even a single one of the hospitals operational yet, the present administration has accused its predecessor of leaving no dedicated source of funding for the "gargantuan project", bringing work at various project sites to a standstill.

President Mahama has told Parliament that he has tasked the Minister of Health to come up with a plan for the way forward for the project, explaining that the government was open to Public Private Partnerships and franchising to complete and operationalise these hospitals.