Don’t politicise NHIS—Asiedu

Page 21, June 10, 2008
Story: Emmanuel Adu-Gyamerah
THE Presiding Member of the Bia District Assembly in the Western Region, Mr P.P. Asiedu, has stated that the National Health Insurance Scheme is a laudable policy and should not be politicised.
He said since it was the wish of every government to cater for the health needs of the people, nothing should be done to discourage the people from registering to be part of the scheme.
Speaking at a farmers’ forum at Kwasi Nkruma in the Bia District, Mr Asiedu stated that the development of every nation depended on the health of the citizenry.
He, therefore, appealed to assembly members to educate the people about the benefits of the scheme.
Mr Asiedu stated that farmers, who were the backbone of the economy, needed to be healthy to enable them to increase their yield.
“It is, therefore, important for them to understand the NHIS so that they will not be swayed by the misinformation being peddled about the scheme,” he said.
He noted that the scheme had nothing to do with politics, explaining that the increasing cost of health made it obvious for Ghanaians to pool their resources to make health care affordable.
Mr Asiedu commended some assembly members in the area for their efforts to enhance the operation of the scheme and urged them to continue to render such dedicated services.
On the forthcoming general election, Mr Asiedu stated that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) was poised to emerge victorious to strengthen the country’s pillars of democracy.
He reminded farmers that there was no other government that could make their lives better and, therefore, called on them to retain the NPP in power.
Mr Asiedu noted that the consistent upward adjustments of the producer price of cocoa, the Capitation Grant, construction and rehabilitation of roads, among other projects, were testimonies of the good work of the government.
He also asked politicians to conduct their campaigns in a peaceful manner devoid of provocative utterances and attack on personalities.
“Let us tell the electorate about our policies instead of attacking our opponents on political platforms,” he said.

Portrait of Mr P.P. Asiedu, the Presiding Member of the Bia District Assembly.