By Robert Tachie-Menson
Dormaa-Ahenkro (Bono), Nov. 19, GNA – Mr Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, the National Chairman of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has urged Ghanaians to pay their taxes regularly and promptly.
He said it would enable the government to generate the required revenue needed for progressive and sustainable development.
He said the government required enough revenue to prosecute development projects for the betterment of the people.
Mr Nketiah gave the advice at a durbar to climax the 70th anniversary celebration of the Dormaa Presbyterian Hospital at Dormaa-Ahenkro in the Bono Region.
He said the government was also working tirelessly to tackle the bottlenecks impeding tax collection, to simplify tax payment and widen the nation’s tax net as well.
Mr Nketiah called on the clergy to do more and use the pulpit to sensitise people on the need for them to honour their tax obligations.
He said the government remained determined to fight corruption by prosecuting offenders, hence the establishment of the ‘Operation Recover All Loot’ (ORAL).
Mr Nketiah cautioned traditional rulers to desist from using their authority and influences to interfere in the prosecuting of corruption cases.
He lauded the Presbyterian Church of Ghana for its effective partnership with the state in delivering critical social amenities and improving the nation’s infrastructural development.
The NDC National Chairman said establishment of Presbyterian schools and hospitals nationwide was a testament of the Church’s contributions towards progressive and sustainable development and called for effective partnership between churches and the State, in tackling the growing trend of indiscipline in schools.
Mr Nketiah commended the management of the Dormaa Presbyterian Hospital for strengthening the cordial relationship with the Dormaa Traditional Area Dormaa, assuring that the government would continue to support the various mission hospitals for the nation to achieve useful health outcomes.
He pledged to ensure that the government supported the construction of the hospital’s emergency center project which had been abandoned for some years now.
The Reverend Dr Isaac Appiah, the General Manager of the Dormaa Presbyterian Hospital thanked Osagyefo Oseadeyo Agyemang Badu II, the Paramount Chief and Nana Fema Dwabeng the Paramount Queenmother of Dormaa Traditional Area for their continuous support towards the growth and development of the hospital.
In a brief history, he said the hospital, which was established in 1956 with only 60 beds, now had 250 beds, with its Outpatient Department (OPD) attendance increasing from 60 to 128,690 in 2024 and an average of 355 daily attendance.
Rev. Dr Appiah said that made the hospital the third health facility with high OPD cases in the Northern sector of the country, saying the facility’s staff strength had also increased from 60 to 802.
He said presently the hospital was undertaking renovation works in all the wards stating that it intended to manufacture and produce its own drugs, beginning 2026, with the required machines and equipment expected in the country by March.
Rev. Dr Appiah appealed to individuals and organisations to support the ongoing renovation works at the hospital, appealing for support to procure a CT scan machine and other vital installations.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/ Christabel Addo