Upper East Regional Minister supports hole-in-heart-patient

Bolgatanga, Feb. 12, GNA - Alhaji Limuna Mohammed Muniru, Upper East Regional Minister on Tuesday presented an amount of GH¢8,000 and a cheque of GH¢500 for the treatment of four -year- old Miss Akena Akanure; a hole-in-heart patient.The money is to be lodged with the Emergency Tertiary Health Foundation Fund (ETHFF) instituted by the Upper East Regional Directorate of the Ghana Health Service (GHS).The presentation was the second chunk of funds raised by the Regional Minister to fulfill a promise to raise funds to pay GH¢10,000 medical bills for the patient to undergo surgery at the Cardiothoracic Center at Korle Bu.The Minister had earlier made a donation of GH¢5,000 bringing the total amount he had raised to GH¢13,500.Alhaji Mohammed-Muniru who made the presentation at the Regional Coordinating Council during a press briefing called on members of the public, especially the media to help to draw attention of the plight of Miss Akanure and the need to urgently support the course.He urged the media as partners to champion the course and said “we are here to save the lives of human beings and I would not want to receive the blessing alone.There is time for politics and time for charity works."He indicated that tertiary health was not an easy condition that could easily be funded by any average person and therefore there was the need to support patients suffering from it.Alhaji Mohammed-Muniru said he knew the plight of Miss Akanure through a local radio station; Tanga Radio in Bolgatanga and added that the girl’s condition was identified by AFRIKIDS, a child rights organisation in the Bolgatanga Municipality, and therefore resolved through pledge to help to save girl’s life.Through appeals to benevolent friends and personal donation, the Minister said the initial amount of GH¢5, 000 was raised and an additional GH?8,500.He thanked those who supported the little girl, especially the Deputy Regional Minister Mr Daniel Syme, and friends Messrs Hakim Alfa, Ali Seidu, Ahmed Moro and Hassan all from Accra and Daniel Asina from Navrongo.The Minister appealed to the public, benevolent institutions and Municipal and District Assemblies (MDAs), to donate to the fund to sustain it, to continue to support the healthcare needs of the poor and vulnerable.Mr Lucio Dery, Deputy Regional Director of Health Services in charge of administration who received the money thanked the Minister for taking a worthy course to support Miss Akanure and said “no one can quantify the contribution of the Minister towards the fund and for that matter to save life”.He therefore appealed to others to emulate the minister’s initiative.GNA Read Full Story