Deputy Minister for Information Pius Hadzide was unable to explain why the Ghana Health Service's official site for Covid-19 updates reported 1,042 cases on their graph from April 13.
A former Director-General of the Ghana Health Service, Professor Agyeman Badu Akosa in an interview with Citi TV said the government of Ghana is massaging the figures of the Covid-19 cases recorded.
According to Prof. Akosa, looking at the graph on the website shows that the case count went up to 1,042 as of April 13 but government did not report.
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"Let me say that surprisingly you go to the Ghana Health Service website and you will realise that on the 13th of April that had been the number that was positive but somehow that number only came out when the President addressed us on Sunday."
He stated that the figures are being managed in a manner that is suitable for the government.
"So in a sense, I am seeing that the results are probably are coming in but the results are being managed in a manner that might look suitable because on the 13th that 1,042 came out and it was immediately removed but interestingly yesterday the 1,042 came out but if you go and look, their graph tells me that was the number we attained on the 13th of April. These are the issues that worry some of us why we could not hold on and make sure we could zone the country and testing centres, currently you moving samples from Upper West to Kumasi why?..."
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Responding to the alleged management of the figures and the capacity of the various testing facilities, Pius Hadzide said he cannot state the capacity of the centres testing for Covid-19.
"We do know the facilities that are testing, Noguchi and KCCR not just these, Korle Bu is also testing and so on we can find these details from the various institutions."
Pius Hadzide explained how the figures are aggregated and validated.
"The figures emanate from the various testing centres, what happens is that these test results are conducted at these centres and the results are transmitted to the Ghana Health Service's surveillance division and the directorate at the service aggregate all these figures and communicate same either through their website or they send the information to the central government, the Ministry of Information or the Presidency so we do not generate the figures, we barely communicate the figures as validated and transmitted by the Ghana Health Service."
He said he is scandalised by the comment of Prof Akosa and described his statement at the unfortunate.
"I am particularly scandalized hearing that the man of the standing of Professor Akosa allegedly will make those comments, accusing the government of managing the figures without providing any quota of evidence I think... below the belt and it is unfortunate."
On issues of why the graph shows 1,042, Pius Hadzide was not able to explain why it is so and said even if that happens the Professor should have consulted the Ghana Health Service and not accuse the government of massaging the figures.
"You cannot use that to accuse the central government of managing the figures you will have to interrogate this with the people who aggregate the data and validate it..."Â
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