The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Health Committee, Nana Ayew Afriyie, has warned that the recent shutdown of a National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) office in Ejisu could set a dangerous precedent if authorities fail to take decisive action against those responsible.

The NHIA office was reportedly locked up by irate youth believed to be supporters of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), who were protesting the appointment of a new manager to the facility.

Speaking in an interview on Joy FM's Top Story, Dr. Afriyie described the incident as unacceptable and called for strict enforcement of the law to prevent similar occurrences across other public institutions.

“For me, it is simply about enforcing the law. In the first year of a new administration, you may want to overlook certain actions due to the exuberance of supporters. But once government settles into serious business, such occurrences cannot be tolerated,” he said.

Dr. Afriyie suggested that the agitation may partly stem from demands for employment but stressed that public sector jobs are meant for all Ghanaians and cannot be determined by political supporters.

He cautioned that rejecting government appointees simply because they are not from within a particular institution could create a troubling precedent where political groups attempt to dictate appointments in public agencies.

"This also happened in January. It’s the same situation. No one has the right to dictate that an appointee must come from within the system. By doing so, you’re setting a precedent that anyone in a government position who didn’t rise through the ranks must be removed and replaced with someone from within. This approach becomes costly and difficult to sustain. Therefore, it must stop, and the government should enforce the existing laws as they stand."

According to him, this trend could make governance unnecessarily difficult and expensive, while undermining professionalism within the public service.

Dr. Afriyie therefore urged government to investigate the incident and ensure that those responsible are arrested and prosecuted, stressing that firm action would serve as a deterrent and help protect the country’s democratic institutions.