‘Ken lied!’ – NPP MP fact-checks former Assin Central lawmaker on Afari Hospital claim
Effiduase-Asokore MP Nana Ayew Afriye has accused former Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong of misrepresenting parliamentary oversight arrangements connected to the stalled Afari Military Hospital project, escalating a fresh dispute within the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP).
Ayew Afriye rejected claims by Agyapong that Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee was responsible for a site inspection of the long-delayed facility, insisting the exercise was carried out under the Health Committee’s mandate.
“Ken lied. The Speaker’s committee that was asked to visit Afari was Health, not Defence. We did so with Nitiwul and reported,” Ayew Afriye said in a social media response to Agyapong’s remarks.
Agyapong, a former Chairman of Parliament’s Defence and Interior Committee and ex-presidential aspirant of the NPP, has in recent comments criticised both the NPP and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) over delays in completing the hospital.
He argued that successive administrations failed to act decisively on the project, which was initiated under former President John Agyekum Kufuor.
“The hospital was started by President John Agyekum Kufuor… I am NPP, and I am telling you the gospel truth. I was the chairman for Defence and Interior, and we didn’t do anything,” Agyapong said, adding that an inspection attempt had allegedly been blocked.
Ayew Afriye, however, maintained that Parliament’s Health Committee conducted the inspection alongside former Defence Minister Dominic Nitiwul, with a formal report submitted to the legislature.
The Afari Military Hospital, designed to serve both military personnel and civilians across Ghana’s middle and northern regions, has remained incomplete for years, becoming a recurring subject of political blame-shifting.
The controversy has intensified scrutiny of the project, with lawmakers trading accusations over responsibility for delays and financing gaps.
Separately, the Minority in Parliament has also criticised recent comments by Deputy Defence Minister Ernest Brogya Genfi, alleging that government is attempting to justify an “unjustified” US$85 million payment demand tied to completion of the facility.
