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Philanthropist appeals for support for Effia Nkwanta Hospital From Peter Gbambila, Takoradi
The Director of Dakah Analytica and DA Foundation, Dodzi Koku Hattoh, has appealed to the government, the oil companies, mining companies and the good people of the Western Region to come to the aid of the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital (ENRH) to be recognised as a referral hospital befitting the region.
He said ENRH as it stood today was full of dilapidated buildings not fit for human habitat because no meaningful renovation has taken place since the hospital was built in 1945.
Hattoh was speaking to The Spectator in an exclusive interview after he handed over the Child Support Unit which he renovated to be used as a holding bay for COVID-19 patients. He said most of the buildings were very old and well designed with so many cracks that no human could agree to work in those structures.
The dilapidated structure was initially to be renovated for children, but the COVID-19 pandemic made it obvious for the structure to be used for the patients and would be converted back as Child Support Unit after COVID-19.
He said the region was well-endowed with so many natural resources like gold, manganese, bauxite, timber and recently the discovery of oil in large quantities.
The director told the The Spectator that it was not fair for important people to be lying in the same ward with the general public because privacy would be compromised.
He said in emergency cases people would have to receive first treatment at ENRH before referral and wondered how dignitaries could be admitted in the same ward with others.
According to him, there were enough avenues for companies to come and adopt some wards and their employees could be admitted into those wards.
He appealed to the traditional authorities to support ENRH for the hospital belonged to them.
The Medical Director of ENRH, Dr Joseph Tambil, who bemoaned the current situation of the hospital, said monies deducted from officers occupying official bungalows were not remitted to the hospital for renovation.
He said the mining, oil and timber companies must finance some projects in the hospital as all the wards which were supposed to be used for the VIPs were in very bad state and could not accommodate any dignitary.
A 30-year-old man has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour by the Bekwai Circuit Court for his role in a 2022 robbery at a mining site at Manso Akwasiso in the Ashanti South Region.
The convict, Dominic Ofori, also known as Fanta, was arrested on 16th February 2026 after years on the run. He pleaded guilty before the Bekwai Circuit Court to robbery contrary to Section 149 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 Act 29, and was accordingly sentenced to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour.
On March 20, 2022, the Manso Adubia District Police received intelligence that a group of armed men from Manso Abodom were planning to attack a mining site at Manso Akwasiso to rob the owner of gold concentrate. Acting on the information, police mounted a coordinated operation and laid an ambush at the site.
At about 5:30 pm the same day, four-armed men arrived at the site, fired indiscriminately, and robbed the miners of their gold concentrate. The police team on surveillance intervened, resulting in an exchange of gunfire.
Three of the suspects, Abu Abubakar, Musah Latif, and Gideon Takyi, sustained gunshot wounds and were pronounced dead on arrival at St Martins Catholic Hospital at Agroyesum. Dominic Ofori escaped at the time but was later arrested and put before the court.
The Ashanti South Regional Police Command has assured the public of its continued commitment to combating violent crimes and bringing offenders to justice.
The Ashanti Regional Police Command has arrested 45-year-old Isaac Boafo, also known as “Duabo King,” for allegedly publishing false news intended to cause fear and panic.
Police said the arrest follows a viral TikTok video in which Boafo claimed that four officers at the Central Police Station in Kumasi engaged in inappropriate conduct with commercial sex workers during night patrols in Asafo.
Officers from the Police Intelligence Directorate (Ashanti Region) apprehended Boafo after receiving intelligence about the video.
During questioning, he admitted to creating the video to attract views and engagement online, and acknowledged that he could not prove the allegations.
Boafo also admitted making comments about the President of the Republic for content purposes and could not defend those statements.
He has been formally charged and is in detention as investigations continue.
The Ashanti Regional Police have warned the public against publishing or sharing false information on social media, noting that such acts can cause fear, panic, and damage reputations.
They said anyone found engaging in similar conduct will face legal action.
By: Jacob Aggrey
