Ambulance to Accra hospital missing at Tema Port

... Gadangme Union in Italy story turns sour

The story involving donation of hospital goods from the Union of Gadangme in Italy (Emilia Romagna Region Branch) has taken an unsual turn.

Ghanaweb, on July 16, carried a story in which natives from the Greater Accra Region in Ghana resident in Italy (Union of Gadangme in Italy - Emilia Romagna Region Branch) shipped to Ghana a number of hospital goods to be donated to some hospitals in the Greater Accra Region.

The goods - 84 hospital beds, a number of hospital bed-side cabinets, an ambulance and uniforms for hospital emergency staff - which arrived at the Tema Port in February this year had not been cleared at the port 4 months after arrival when the story first broke out.

A representative of the Union in Accra, Adjei Klu - a journalist at Obonu FM - earlier told of how he was frustrated in an effort to clear the goods which upon the instructions of the Union should be allocated to some specific Government hospitals in the Greater Accra Region. The Ministry of Health was blamed for the early release of the goods as its susbsidiary office, the Procurement Department, was reported to be delaying to process the necessary documents in time. The man at the centre of the blame and controversy, Romeo Tetteh - an official at the Procurement Department - who was handling the processing of the required papers explained a request for some documents on the ambulance was delayed and that resulted in some rent charges on the Container of the goods at the Port - the figure on the rent charge was quoted to be 8,000 Ghana cedis (about $6,000). He made it known at that time the Ministry of Health was trying to raise funds to pay for the cost on the rent charge.

This was denied by the representative of the Union in Accra who argued he first contacted the office of Customs and Excise Department in Accra when the goods arrived for clearance expecting to be cleared at no cost to the Union being that they are donations. He said the Customs and Excise Department directed him to contact the Ministry of Health for a document before they can issue the final document to have the goods cleared at the Port. According to his story, he made repeated calls at the office of the Procurement Department both personal and through telephone but was unable to get the document requested by Customs and Excise Department as he was turned back and forth without tangible reasons.

The latest information has it that some Executive Committee members of the Union from Italy were in Accra recently for holidays and decided to get involved in the whole saga of clearing the goods to be sent to the beneficiaries. They contacted some top members of Government and matters led them to the Castle at Osu in Accra. Some couple of telephone calls were made and that finally led them to the Tema Port with an agent from the Supply Commision which according to Romeo Tetteh are the agents for clearing of goods for the Ministry of Health. When the Container of the goods was opened for observation, the ambulance - to be donated to Damfa Clinic in the Greater Accra Region - was missing.

The Union Executive members also reported the arrangements of the hospital beds in the Container of which they were involved in the packing in Italy has been distorted raising suspicion that the goods has been tampered with. It has further been established the seal and number on the Container is not the same shipped with the goods from the Port in Genova, Italy (according to them been replaced with a Ghana seal) - this was confirmed on the bill of lading.

When contacted, Romeo Tetteh said he had information on the missing ambulance from the agent of Supply Commision who was at the harbour with the Union Executive members and had no idea of the whereabout of the vehicle, adding, the case has been referred to the office of the shipping company, Maersk Line, in Accra.

It has also been revealed, by the Union, cross checks made by Maersk Line in Italy showed the ambulance is not Italy but was duly shipped to Ghana. The Union has decided to get to the bottom of the matter on the whereabout of the missing ambulance. A report has been made to the Ghana police and investigations is expected to start soon.

- Reggie Tagoe in Modena, Italy.