Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh has urged former Health Minister Dr. Bernard Okoe-Boye to be careful in his public statements regarding the ongoing controversy surrounding the Lightwave Health Information Management System (LHIMS) contract.
Speaking on Adom TV’s Badwam on Thursday, Mr. Akandoh said that while political parties often encourage their members to speak in defence of the government, personal integrity should always come first.
“I have seen Okoe-Boye issue statements regarding the ongoing software saga,” Akandoh said. “My advice to him is this: issues of this nature may prompt your party to push you to speak, but you must remember that your integrity is what lasts beyond political office. He has to be careful with everything he says.”
He further warned that those encouraging public defence may abandon supporters if the situation turns unfavourable.
“The same people pushing you, if things do not go well and you are disgraced, when power changes hands, you will be pushed aside. They will tell you that you have no integrity,” he cautioned.
Dr. Okoe-Boye, who served under the previous administration, recently defended the engagement of LHIMS for Ghana’s national health data platform, insisting the contract followed due process and aimed to modernise health data management.
Mr. Akandoh, however, stated that the contract did not deliver value for money and revealed that the government has referred the matter to the Attorney-General for legal and security advice after the vendor allegedly withheld access to the health data platform following the contract’s expiration.
