The minority caucus in Parliament is calling on the government to immediately reverse the suspension of Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo, the CEO of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH).

Ranking Member on Parliament’s Health Committee, Dr Nana Ayew Afriye, in a statement issued on Sunday, described the decision as a misguided attempt to shift attention from deeper problems in Ghana’s healthcare system.

He said the suspension was a “knee-jerk decision” that failed to address the real causes of the persistent “No Bed Syndrome” confronting the hospital.

According to him, while every preventable loss of life must be investigated, holding the KATH CEO solely responsible ignores longstanding structural challenges in the health sector.

“The persistent ‘No Bed Syndrome’ is not fundamentally a leadership problem at KATH. It is a capacity problem. It is an infrastructure problem. It is a referral system problem. It is a health workforce and resource allocation problem,” he stated.

The Minority lawmaker argued that pressure on KATH has worsened because critical health facilities intended to ease congestion at the teaching hospital have not been fully operationalised.

He pointed to the Ashanti Regional Hospital at Sewua and the Afari Military Hospital, saying both facilities were developed to reduce the burden on KATH.

“It is therefore difficult to understand why a government that inherited these critical facilities would choose to suspend a hospital CEO rather than accelerate the full operationalisation of these hospitals and strengthen referral arrangements,” he said.

Dr. Ayew Afriye also cited the Trede District Hospital and the Kokoben-Oforikrom District Hospital, both commissioned in 2024 with 100-bed capacities and designed to provide modern healthcare services in the Ashanti Region.

He questioned why the facilities remain largely non-operational nearly two years after commissioning, while KATH continues to struggle with severe congestion.

“It is therefore difficult to understand how government can justify suspending the CEO of KATH for challenges arising from excess demand when two fully completed 100-bed hospitals, specifically built to absorb part of that demand, remain unable to provide the services for which they were constructed,” he argued.

The Ranking Member further suggested that the government must explain the delays in fully activating key health facilities in the Ashanti Region.

“Many Ghanaians are beginning to wonder whether the apparent lack of urgency in bringing critical facilities such as the Sewua Hospital into full operation is influenced by the fact that the Ashanti Region is not considered a major electoral stronghold of the governing NDC. Government must provide clear answers,” he said.

Dr Ayew Afriye maintained that suspending the hospital’s chief executive would do little to solve the crisis.

“Punishing one hospital administrator may create headlines, but it will not create additional beds, equip emergency wards, recruit specialist staff, or decongest referral centres.

"What the Ghanaian people expect is leadership that confronts the root causes of the crisis rather than seeking convenient scapegoats,” he stated.

He called on government to immediately revoke the suspension, operationalise completed health facilities meant to support KATH, address concerns raised by the Ghana Medical Association and other health professionals, and adopt what he described as a more consultative approach to managing the health sector.

“The health sector requires solutions, not scapegoats. The suspension of the KATH CEO may satisfy a temporary political narrative, but it does little to address the fundamental challenges confronting healthcare delivery in Ghana,” the statement said.

The Minority also urged all stakeholders to prioritise dialogue and engagement to prevent further disruption to healthcare services at the hospital while efforts are made to resolve the impasse.

Meanwhile, medical doctors at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi have announced an indefinite withdrawal of services in protest against the Minister of Health's directive to suspend the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo.

According to the doctors, the minister's action, directing the hospital's Board to suspend the CEO, Dr Paa Kwesi Baidoo, for two weeks, was unjustified and detrimental to efforts aimed at safeguarding patient care.

The doctors decided at an emergency meeting on Friday, June 5, 2026, following the CEO's suspension.