The District Manager of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) in North Dayi, Mr. Edem Sebastian, has dismissed reports suggesting that the Member of Parliament for the area, Hon. Joycelyn Tetteh Quashie, is undermining President John Dramani Mahama through a supposed rebranded health initiative.
In a statement to journalists, Mr. Sebastian described the claims as “regrettable and unfortunate,” insisting they were intended to create unnecessary tension between the MP and the President.
“Those reports are completely misleading and should be ignored,” he said. “Rather than sabotaging anyone, the MP has been our strongest supporter in registering residents onto the National Health Insurance Scheme.”
According to Mr. Sebastian, Hon. Quashie’s Free Health Insurance Renewal and Registration Exercise is a personal initiative to support her constituents and is distinct from President Mahama’s Free Primary Healthcare Agenda, which has not yet been implemented in the district.
He explained that the NHIA district office had appealed for assistance to meet its annual registration target of over 41,000 residents.
While only about 40 percent of the population qualifies for free registration, the rest are required to pay, a factor that threatened the Authority’s performance indicators.
“The MP’s intervention came at a critical time when many residents were unwilling or unable to pay,” Mr. Sebastian said. “She sponsored free registration and renewals for her constituents, as she has done previously with the Kpando NHIA.”
Mr. Sebastian also criticized the Campaigner newspaper, which first published the story, for failing to provide credible sources or evidence. “The newspaper didn’t attribute the allegation to anyone. That alone shows the story was fabricated,” he noted.
He warned against attempts to politicize the NHIA’s work, suggesting the story may have been fueled by internal party rivalry.
“We are a state institution and must not be drawn into any political squabbles that could derail our work,” he emphasized.
Mr. Sebastian reiterated that Hon. Joycelyn Quashie remains the only stakeholder to have offered assistance for the NHIA’s registration exercise in the district.
Source: Myxyzonline.com
