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Mahama and wife renovate Hohoe Adabraka Health Centre

Former First Lady Lordina Dramani Mahama has inaugurated a renovated and expanded health centre at Hohoe Adabraka in the Volta Region.

The dilapidated structure that once housed the facility has been transformed into a modern health centre, providing additional service space for patients and healthcare workers.

The renovated facility now features two separate wards, fully equipped with modern hospital beds and accessories, two consulting rooms with examination beds, a laboratory, a storeroom, and a spacious waiting area, complete with a reception desk and visitor chairs.

“My heart is full of gratitude and joy because what was once a shabby, run-down structure has been transformed into a modern facility equipped to provide affordable and accessible healthcare to this community,” Mrs Mahama stated at a ceremony in Hohoe on Tuesday.

She explained that although the NDC parliamentary candidate for Hohoe had requested medical equipment, she and her husband, President John Dramani Mahama, reviewed images of the centre and decided to renovate and expand it for the benefit of the people.

“I am sure you are all surprised at how we have transformed that death trap of a building into what we see here today,” she remarked.

Highlighting the importance of healthcare, Mrs Mahama referenced key innovative health initiatives outlined in the National Democratic Congress (NDC) 2024 manifesto, including Free Primary Health Care, which aims to alleviate the financial burden that often deters families from seeking medical attention.

She also celebrated her husband’s generosity in financing the project through the Lordina Foundation as his 66th birthday gift to the people of Hohoe.

“This health centre will not only serve as a place of healing but also symbolise hope, empowerment, and John Mahama’s love for the people of Hohoe and Ghana,” she added.

Mrs Mahama conveyed a message of hope and prosperity for all Ghanaians under a John Mahama administration, urging the people to vote for him and all NDC parliamentary candidates in the upcoming elections.

A representative of the Lordina Foundation, Pastor Kwame Boateng-Sarpong, praised Mr. and Mrs. Mahama for their philanthropy and visionary leadership. He also acknowledged the foundation’s efforts to improve the lives of women and children, particularly in underserved communities, through enhanced healthcare, education, and overall well-being.

“This initiative aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 3 and underscores Mrs Mahama’s commitment to ensuring that every individual, regardless of location or circumstance, has access to quality healthcare,” he stated.

Jessica Honya-Tsiewu, the medical officer in charge of the facility, highlighted the previous lack of space and adequate medical equipment, which hindered healthcare delivery.

“This situation compelled us to admit only male patients at times because it was medically inappropriate to house both genders in the same room, especially in a Muslim community that disapproves of such arrangements,” she explained.

Madam Honya-Tsiewu expressed her excitement about the newly commissioned project, calling it a game-changer because it will add separate male and female wards, which is crucial for healthcare delivery in the community.

The Lordina Foundation, in addition to the expansion works at the facility, donated essential medical supplies to the Centre. The items included hospital beds, an electric suction unit, delivery beds, baby cots, baby cribs, boxes of latex gloves, syringes, and a refrigerator.

Established in 2014, the original facility had deteriorated over the past decade. The Lordina Foundation’s renovations mark a significant step toward improving healthcare access in the region.

Parliament finalises draft bill to introduce paternity leave & extend maternity leave

The Parliament has finalised the draft bill for the extension of maternity leave and the introduction of paternity leave.

The Labour (Amendment) Bill, 2023, was initiated by Member of Parliament, Madina, Francis-Xavier Sosu.

The Bill which seeks to amend section 54 of the Labour Act provides that “a male worker is entitled to a period of paternity leave for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of four weeks in addition to a period of annual leave which the man worker is entitled to, if the man worker produces a medical certificate issued by a medical practitioner or midwife indicating the expected date of the confinement of the spouse of the man.”

The clause further provides that the man worker is entitled to be paid his full benefits and remuneration which the man worker is entitled to. The clause allows the paternity leave to be extended for a period of at least two weeks where the spouse of the man has a caesarean section, or stillbirth or where two or more babies are born in the course of the same confinement.

Also, a male worker who adopts a child of not more than three months is entitled to paternity leave.

Also, Clause 2 of the Bill which seeks to amend section 57 of the Labour Act, 2003 (Act 651) substitutes “twelve” with “seventeen and at most twenty-six weeks” and by the insertion after subsection (1) of a provision which allows a woman worker who adopts a child of not more than three months to be entitled to maternity leave.

The clause further provides for the extension of maternity leave for an additional period of two weeks where the confinement is abnormal, where the woman worker has a cesarean section or still birth, or where in the course of the confinement two or more babies are born.

Additionally, Clause 3 of the Bill seeks to insert a new clause after section 57 to provide for flexible working conditions.

It provides that a female worker who is pregnant or lactating may apply to the employer for flexible working conditions; an application for flexible working conditions shall be in writing and indicate the reasons for the application.

Also, the employer is required to give a written response to the applicant within fourteen days stating whether the employer grants or refuses the application.

Following the completion of the draft Bill, the Bill will proceed to be gazetted, and read for the first time on the floor of the House, before being referred to the relevant committee for consideration.

It will be recalled that Madina MP, Sosu, initiated the Bill in October 2023, and conducted a stakeholders’ engagement to consider the objects of the Bill on Monday, March 4 2024 at Parliament House.

According to Mr Sosu, “the Bill forms part of efforts to achieve gender parity, and realise a free, fair, inclusive, progressive, and just society for all.”

The Madina MP who doubles as deputy Ranking member of the Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee of Parliament has so far initiated 17 Private Member’s Bills.

These include the death penalty bills, anti-witchcraft accusations bill, community sentencing bill, and bill to remove taxes on sanitary pads, among others; with three having been passed by Parliament, and one receiving Presidential assent.

 

Source: Myjoyonline.com