Liberia: Privatize JFK Hospital – allAfrica.com

-Sen. Pennue recommends

Grand Gedeh county Senator Zoe Emmanuel Pennue, has suggested that Government of Liberia should privatize the John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital to enable it provide efficient services to the public.

According to Senator Pennue, when the hospital is privatized, it will have equipment and medication at affordable prices for citizens who take treatment there. Speaking Thursday, January 19, in the chambers of the Liberian Senate, Sen. Pennue said that most of the Doctors at JFK own private clinics and pharmacies in the county.

“I was sick and went to JFK for treatment and they hired another clinic to do my lab. All the medications for the hospital are taken by those same Doctors and carried to the private clinics and pharmacies,” he added.

Also making briefing remarks from break, River Gee County Senator Conmany Wesseh, warned public officials to stop displaying their wealth, openly in a way that may cause instability in the country.

Sen. Wesseh cautioned his colleagues to watch out for the trigger of conflicts, especially during this election year. He recounted that chaos was experienced in the past due to the way elections were held.

He noted that processes leading to the conduct of elections are scaring, adding that there are serious cases of security in the country, and unexplained death reports without an outcome being reported by the Liberia National Police.

Sen. Wesseh said that the way wealth acquired by a government is explained to the public, has the propensity to trigger chaos or violence.

“There are some schools operating in the county without teachers being paid, especially the volunteer teachers are always introduced to me and my colleagues to pay them. The same way health facilities have no drugs, beds and many others.” Sen. Wesseh lamented.

For his part, Senator Wellington Geevon Smith of Rivercess County is appealing to government through the Ministry of Education to give urgent attention to a modern school built by a citizen from River Cess, who died on September 8, 2022.

He said that the deceased’s widow communicated with the Caucus that on March 2023, she will officially turn over the school to the Government of Liberia. He also said that the team will be visiting the Ministry of Education soon to ask that it kindly include teachers at that school on payroll.

“The school is well structured with good learning materials and facilities for students, it can be compared with schools in the western world; the only difference is the location.” Sen. Smith added.

According to the River Cess County Senator, the school will negatively be affected if national government through the Ministry of Education fails to arrest the situation.