In a shocking revelation that has sent ripples through the nation, a detailed report has emerged accusing key figures at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital (GARH) also known as Ridge Hospital of gross mismanagement, corruption, and procurement breaches.
The report intercepted by ModernGhana News, which comes from a private investigative body, sheds light on what appears to be a well-coordinated scheme involving hospital officials, past government appointees, and figures at the Ghana Health Service (GHS) headquarters. According to the report, millions of cedis have been siphoned off through fraudulent contracts, depriving the hospital of much-needed resources and compromising patient care.
At the heart of these allegations is the current Medical Director of GARH, Rev. Dr. Ralph Armah, who is accused of complicity in approving dubious deals that have led to a severe loss in hospital revenue. The report claims that these individuals, through a network of illicit agreements, diverted funds meant for hospital operations and instead funneled them into the hands of private companies, some of which seem to have been created specifically to exploit the system.
One of the most controversial deals involves the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) agreement between GARH and a company called Refuah Ltd. In 2023, when the hospital’s imaging equipment malfunctioned, the management chose to outsource the entire department to Refuah Ltd , a company that had been incorporated just months before securing the contract. The investigation revealed that Refuah Ltd, which specializes in hospital equipment sales, had no prior experience in medical imaging. Despite this, they were awarded a contract worth millions of cedis on 9th June 2023, with GARH reportedly paying 80% of the revenue from the imaging department to the company. However, the services provided by Refuah Ltd were minimal—only installing an ultrasound machine and making repairs to existing equipment, leaving the hospital staff to operate and maintain the machines. Yet, the payments continued.
The shady dealings don’t stop there. The report reveals several other questionable contracts, including one with Riverwoods Medical Equipment and Dialysis Company Ltd on 20th March 2019, which allegedly lied about its credentials and misrepresented itself to secure a government contract. Another dubious contract was awarded to Safe Africa Security Services Ltd in 2017, despite the hospital already having an effective in-house security team. The company was paid significant sums, yet failed to provide the agreed number of security personnel. In total, these dubious deals have cost GARH millions of cedis.
Ash Town Cleaning Services was contracted to provide cleaning services under highly questionable circumstances. Investigations revealed that this company is not registered with the Registrar of Companies and does not meet statutory tax obligations or meet his SSNIT obligations. Additionally, the contract’s financial details remain undisclosed, raising concerns about potential corruption. Again, the laws are clear on contract sum thresholds for an entity heads otherwise the PPA procurement process must be referred, yet that was not the case in this internal agreement with Ash Town Cleaning Services and others.
As investigations continue, the scope of corruption at GARH is becoming ever clearer. The evidence suggests that GARH’s management not only failed to uphold the principles of transparency and fairness in procurement but may have been complicit in a series of fraudulent activities that have left the hospital in a dire financial situation.
The hospital’s imaging department, which was once a critical source of revenue, has seen its income plummet. The report notes that in the first half of 2024, revenue from the department dropped drastically, falling from over 3 million cedis in 2022 to just 1.8 million in 2024. This alarming trend underscores the devastating impact of the fraudulent activities that have taken root in the institution.
