Health Minister Defends KATH CEO Suspension, Says Parliamentary Approval Was Not Required

Ghana’s Health Minister has mounted a firm defence of his decision to suspend the Chief Executive Officer of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, telling Parliament that the teaching hospitals law gives him clear authority to act without seeking the House’s approval.

Kwabena Mintah Akandoh suspended Dr. Paa Kwesi Baidoo, the KATH CEO, after the hospital closed its Accident and Emergency Unit in what the minister described as a direct violation of a presidential policy directive requiring all health facilities to accept emergency cases. The suspension sparked a confrontation in Parliament on June 16, with Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin criticising the minister for failing to consult the House before taking action against a public institution’s head.

Akandoh was unapologetic. Citing Section 36 of the teaching hospitals law, he argued that ministerial directives carry legal supremacy over hospital board decisions. “The decision of the Minister is not subject to the review of the board,” he told legislators. “It is the decisions of the Board that is subject to the review of the Minister.”

The minister framed the suspension as an enforcement measure, not a disciplinary overreach. President John Dramani Mahama had issued a policy direction that no health facility in the country should turn away emergency cases, Akandoh said, adding that the president had gone further to instruct that life-saving measures should be implemented even on the ground if necessary. “When the president speaks, it’s a policy that the Minister must implement,” he said.

Dr. Baidoo, the suspended CEO, reportedly admitted the closure and apologised during a meeting with the minister. Akandoh said the suspension was intended as a deterrent while an investigation was conducted into the circumstances that led to the unit’s closure.

“Let me put on record that nobody, absolutely nobody in this country, has the right to close any portion of a public health facility without the consent of the state, in this case the minister,” Akandoh told Parliament. He framed the question back to the House: “Mr. Speaker, is it a decision I needed the approval of the House to do so?”

The episode raises questions about the boundaries of ministerial authority over Ghana’s teaching hospitals, institutions that occupy a unique position in the health system as both specialised referral centres and quasi-autonomous bodies governed by their own boards. Akandoh’s reading of the law gives the minister near-absolute power over hospital management decisions, a position that could set a precedent for future interventions.

Afenyo-Markin’s objection was not merely procedural. The Minority Leader pointed to Akandoh’s own track record as a former Ranking Member on Parliament’s Health Committee, where he had consistently demanded accountability from ministers who acted without parliamentary oversight. The irony was not lost on the House.

Yet the substance of the minister’s argument is difficult to dismiss. A presidential policy directive on emergency healthcare is not a suggestion. If the teaching hospitals law indeed grants the minister overriding authority over board decisions, then Akandoh acted within his legal mandate, however politically uncomfortable the optics may be. The question now is whether the investigation into the KATH CEO’s conduct will vindicate the suspension or expose it as an overreaction that could chill institutional autonomy across the health sector.

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