|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Claim: “Dr. Sneaker Nyame” with the handle @SneakerNyame_ claimed on X at 3:54 PM on February 27, 2025, that none of the Agenda 111 hospitals were operational after “eight years” and called for President Mahama to jail those responsible.
Verdict: Misleading! DUBAWA found that the Agenda 111 project started in August 2021 and ran for about 3.5 years until the NPP left office in January 2025, not eight years. It missed its 18-month target, but claiming “8 good years” of inactivity exaggerates the timeline.
Full Text
On Feb. 27, 2025, shortly after President John Dramani Mahama delivered his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) of his new term, an X user, Dr Sneaker Nyame (@SneakerNyame_), posted a tweet stating: “8 good years, None of the Agenda 111 hospitals were operating. Mahama needs to Jail some people. Wicked people.”
The post, which attracted 124.2K views, appears to critique the Agenda 111 hospital project, a flagship healthcare initiative of the previous New Patriotic Party (NPP) administration under ex-president Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
The X user’s reference to “8 good years” suggests a period during which no hospitals under this project became operational, tying it to the NPP’s governance and implying significant failure or mismanagement.
Meanwhile, the Agenda 111 project was officially launched on August 17, 2021, with a sod-cutting ceremony at Trede in the Ashanti Region, as confirmed by the Ministry of Health.
This initiative aimed to construct 101 district hospitals, six regional hospitals in newly created regions, one additional regional hospital in the Western Region, and two psychiatric hospitals in Kumasi and Tamale, and redevelop the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, totalling 111 facilities.
Announced initially as “Agenda 88” in April 2020 during Akufo-Addo’s eighth COVID-19 address, it was expanded to Agenda 111 by mid-2021.
The government promised completion within 18 months of starting construction, targeting mid-2023, though delays pushed this timeline further.
In his SONA on February 27, 2025, President Mahama stated, “For the record, as I speak, not a single Agenda 111 hospital is operational in any part of Ghana. It is worth disclosing that US$400 million has already been disbursed under the Agenda 111 project.”
Delivered less than two months after his inauguration on Jan 7, 2025, this statement reflects the situation at the end of the NPP’s eight-year tenure (January 2017 to January 2025). The X user’s claim hinges on this non-operational status, with the “8 good years” framing the NPP’s full term.
However, the specific focus on this timeline warrants scrutiny: Does it accurately reflect the duration of the Agenda 111 project, or does it exaggerate the period of accountability? DUBAWA had to step in.
Verification
To evaluate the “8 good years” claim, DUBAWA assessed its relevance to the Agenda 111 project’s timeline and the hospitals’ operational status as of February 2025.
Timeline Analysis (“8 good years”):
Dr Sneaker Nyame’s “8 good years” aligns with the NPP’s governance period from January 7, 2017, to January 7, 2025, exactly eight years, during which Akufo-Addo’s administration led Ghana. This is a reasonable interpretation of his intent, as it covers the entirety of the NPP’s two terms, ending with Mahama’s assumption of office.
However, the Agenda 111 project itself did not span this full duration. The initiative was conceived as “Agenda 88” in April 2020 to build 88 district hospitals, which was announced in response to COVID-19 healthcare gaps. It evolved into Agenda 111 by August 2021, when construction officially began with the Trede sod-cutting ceremony.
Thus, from the project’s formal launch to the end of the NPP’s term (August 17, 2021, to January 7, 2025), only about three years and five months elapsed, making just over 40% of the eight years cited.
The NPP’s broader healthcare promises, including commitments to improve infrastructure, have existed since 2017, but Agenda 111, as a specific, actionable project, began in 2021.
The original 18-month timeline (August 2021 to February 2023) was ambitious, intending to deliver hospitals by mid-2023.
However, Mahama’s SONA assertion that none were operational by February 27, 2025, suggests these facilities were not fully functional (e.g., lacking staff, equipment, or patient services).
The “8 good years” plan thus overstates the project’s active duration by roughly 4.5 years, as it includes time before Agenda 111 was conceptualised, DUBAWA realised.
Conclusion
Dr Sneaker Nyame’s claim that “8 good years” passed with “none of the Agenda 111 hospitals operating” is misleading. While President Mahama’s SONA confirms that no hospitals were operational on February 27, 2025, the “8 good years” exaggerates the Agenda 111 timelines. A more precise framing would tie the delay to the project’s 3.5-year history rather than the broader eight-year governance period.
