A former Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Prof Agyeman Badu Akosa has bemoaned the fact that Ghanaian public officials are allowed to travel out to seek healthcare at the expense of taxpayers.

Lamenting about the huge amounts Ghana spends to fund foreign healthcare, Prof. Akosa asked, “Why should any public officer, politician or senior public officer be allowed to travel out to go and seek healthcare?”

“If you look at the budget for external treatment, why are we not prepared to make sure that, there are MRIs in every region?”

The former presidential aspirant of the Convention People’s Party (CPP) said this in an interview with Talking Africa.

He continued, “Whether you like it or not, health is expensive and when they go out, they pay through their nose so why can’t we develop here? If the President is not well and is admitted to UGMC or to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, what will happen? There are no competent doctors to look after them? There are.”

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Beyond just calling for the healthcare system of Ghana to be improved and public officials to be banned from seeking healthcare outside, Prof. Akosa also called for a policy to ensure the public officials and politicians take their children to school in Ghana and not fly them to foreign countries for their education.

“And, I believe sincerely that if you are appointed as a politician and your children don’t go to school in this country, the President should ask questions. You want to put on a policy on education and your children don’t go to school here? No. Why should that be?” he stated.