We are being haunted - Achievers Pharmacy CEO cries over unlawful closure of facility

The Chief Executive Officer of Achievers Pharmacy and Laboratory Services, Philip Anokye, has called out the Ashanti Regional Director of the Ghana Pharmacy Council for what he described as witch-hunting and a move to frustrate young entrepreneurs doing legitimate business in the country.

Philip Anokye was speaking to the media regarding the closure of the pharmacy department of his facility by a joint operation by the Pharmacy Council in the Ashanti Region and the police at their Konongo branch on Friday, February 2, 2024.

"This operation was specifically targeted at Achievers Pharmacy, and the police were lured into it because the police officers themselves did not understand why the director wanted to close the shop, which resulted in the reluctance of the Konongo police officers during the operations," he said.

Achievers Pharmacy and Laboratory Services is one of the leading medical facilities in the Ashanti Region, with branches in Obuasi and Konongo. This facility has employed over 20 health professionals and other paramedics.

The facility was in the news in 2023 as a result of a similar move by the council, which resulted in the closure of their facility in Obuasi for no reason.

A further probe found that the Ashanti Regional Director acted unlawfully and that the then National Pharmacy Registrar, Dr. RAUF, ordered the reopening of the pharmacy.

The sequence of events has been criticized by the CEO, describing it as a clear case of persecution by Benjamin Kwarteng Frimpong, the Ashanti regional director of the Pharmacy Council.

Throwing more light on the issue at hand, the CEO of Achievers Pharmacy and Laboratory Services said they followed all the due processes before they opened their Konongo branch.

"As per the laid-down regulations and others, we have to hire the services of a pharmacist in good standing, which we have already done. The pharmacist has since worked closely with the director of the pharmacy council to go through the online registration," he added.

Mr. Anokye continued that the director has been fully participating and assisting them to go through the online processes since January 2024; hence, he could not fathom why the director, together with the police, in a Rambo-style fashion, came to close down their shop.

Lengthy registration processes:

The Achievers CEO further stated that, as per the practice in the pharmaceutical business, as long as the site for the business is accepted, the pharmacist is in good standing, and approval is given, they could start operations while going through the registration processes due to the bureaucratic nature of it.

"This is a system certified and approved by the council due to the long process the registration takes, and mind you, we need to meet customer demands," he added.

Payment of facilitation:

As a norm, Philip Anokye said they had to pay huge amounts to the director and his people as facilitation while undergoing the registration processes and awaiting the paper certification; hence, they do not understand why the Council saw the need to close their shop for no apparent reason.

He described the practices as mere extortion from the director and his pharmacy inspectors at the council.

Registration with HeFRA:

According to the CEO of Achievers Pharmacy and Medical Laboratory, their laboratory has been certified by the Health Facility Regulatory Agency (HeFRA) to operate their business.

"As we speak, we have been certified by HeFRA to work. The Regional Director of HeFRA lauded our work and the facilities we have. He implored us to recruit more staff to bridge the unemployment gap in the country," he said.

Killing of businesses by the council:

Mr. Anokye berated the Ashanti Regional Director of the Council for clearly killing the businesses of young entrepreneurs and making it difficult for new pharmacists and pharmaceutical companies to come up.

He said while the operation to close his pharmacy shop was ongoing, the Regional Director had their online registration form in his hands.

He said while his business has been targeted, others have similar complaints, leading to some voluntarily closing down their businesses as a result of frustrations from the council.

He again calls for forensic auditing of the activities of the Kumasi Regional Pharmacy Council and their role in health facility registration, which seems to contradict HeFRA's genuine procedures.

The young businessman debunked reports by the council that he sold unauthorized drugs in his shop, insisting that all the drugs on their shelves were registered pharmaceutical products.

"We were waiting for the council to come in to do their inspection and certification before we started full operations," Mr. Anokye said.

Calls on government and stakeholders to intervene:

Meanwhile, the CEO of Achievers Pharmacy and Laboratory Services has called on the Ministry of Health and the government to intervene to put a stop to the illegalities perpetuated by the Ashanti Regional Pharmacy Council.

"The government must strictly intervene to put a stop to the illegal activities happening at the Council since it is becoming a disincentive to doing legitimate business in the country, while genuine businesses are gradually collapsing due to this," he said.