THE FLOWN-AWAY VEHICLE OF THE NADOWLI/KALEO DISTRICT HEALTH DIRECTORATE

Community Development talk show bench of Tumpaani Radio at Nadowli in the Upper West Region has discovered that a Mitsubishi brand vehicle with registration number, GV-236-12 belonging to Nadowli/Kaleo Health Directorate in the Nadowli/Kaleo district of the Upper West Region has not been at the post for over a year and a half but could not also be found anywhere around the facility.

An investigation was initiated by the team to figure out the whereabouts of the vehicle which revealed that, the vehicle was not at post. Our investigation team began the probe by confirming from the Upper West Regional transport office that the said Mitsubishi vehicle with registration number GV-236-12 was allocated to the Nadowli/Kaleo Health Directorate but could not ascertain whether the vehicle was still at post or grounded.

Our team took a further step to inquire from the Nadowli/Kaleo District transport office whether the office knows about the car and whether it is at post or faulty. Our inquiries from the district reaffirmed that the vehicle is for the directorate. However, it has been out of post since November 2023 and has since been sent away for repairs. Meanwhile, the district transport office had no idea about the location of the vehicle as well as the state of the repairs but suggested the district director would be in a better position to give us details about the status of the vehicle. 

It did not just end there, our team made another effort to reach out to one Mr. Mohammed Nuhu Dumba who happens to be the driver at the time the car was being moved away for repairs in November 2023. Mr. Nuhu who is currently not with the facility confirmed to us during a phone call that he drove the car to Wa for repairs. He however reiterated that he could not at the time of our conversation reveal to us the location of the car but further suggested that our investigation team should contact the district health director for further details regarding the whereabouts of the vehicle. 

The inquisitiveness increased which calls for a further probe. Our team therefore contacted the district health director, Madam Phoebe Balagumyetime as suggested by the regional and district transport offices as well as Mr. Nuhu the former driver. The team requested to speak to her on the same issue during our usual Community Development talk show on Tumpaani Radio 88.5Mhz. She however demanded we meet in her office at the directorate first for a discussion. On Thursday, March 13, 2025, our investigation team agreed to meet at her office as requested.

OUTCOME OF OUR MEETING WITH MADAM PHOEBE

Our team got to the health directorate at around 2:30 pm. Madam Phoebe thought it prudent that the meeting should include other heads of department at the directorate. Madam Phoebe in the presence of other five HODs comprising three males, and two females admitted that the said vehicle was for the facility. The car according to her, is however faulty and has since been sent away to WA for assessment and repairs. She added that the car was towed to WA because it could not be driven. Madam Phoebe further revealed that, after the assessment of the vehicle, the mechanic needed over GH₵ 20,000.00 before the car could be worked on and that the directorate is still searching for funds to work on the vehicle. She humorously pleaded if our team could use our medium to help solicit funds for the directorate to work on the vehicle. 

When further quizzed about where exactly the car was situated, she emphatically stated that the car was with a mechanic whose workshop is around the Wa Airport. She gave out the mechanic’s contact details and charged our team to further engage the mechanic to confirm what she said. She also confidently mentioned how she protected the said vehicle from being auctioned with the reason that she prefers that vehicle to any other vehicle at the facility. 

After the team engaged with Madam Phoebe and her management, our team made a further move to reach out to the supposed mechanic who was to work on the vehicle. A member of our investigation team went to the workshop of the said mechanic whom Madam said she would not be able to recognize if she saw him but only referred to him as “Chief”. However, the mechanic informed our team member that he would not utter a word about the vehicle without the permission of Madam Phoebe but stated to our team member that the car was driven to his workshop but was later driven away. Our team member’s efforts to reach out to Madam Phoebe whilst at the workshop with the mechanic proved fruitless. 

FACTS 

After several engagements and interrogations, our investigation team came out with the following findings;

The district health director, Madam Phoebe said the Mitsubishi vehicle with registration number, GV-236-12 was toad to Wa for repairs which is contradictory to what Mr. Nuhu said which is that he (Mr. Nuhu) drove the car to Wa.  

Madam also highlighted that as of the time of our engagement on Thursday, March 13, 2025, the vehicle was at the mechanic whose workshop is around the Wa Airport. Meanwhile, our checks revealed that the said vehicle was packed at the residence of one Mr. Nicholas Aboya but was later moved to the Upper West Regional Health Directorate. 

Madam also denied knowing anything about the movement of the vehicle from Mr. Nicholas’ residence to the Upper Regional Health Directorate. Meanwhile, our team visited the regional health directorate on Friday, March 14, 2025, around 10:30 am and confirmed that the car was by then packed at the regional health directorate at the blind side of the regional transport officer who spoke to us on the phone. 

Our checks also revealed that, the earlier assertion that, the car could not move and was therefore toad to Wa is untrue considering its movement from Mr. Nicholas’ residence to the regional health directorate overnight. 

The mechanic who is referred to as “Chief” said that the vehicle was driven to his workshop but was later taken away.  

CONCLUSION 

To conclude our investigation, our team had another engagement with Madam Phoebe on Friday, March 14, 2025, where the above findings were put before her after she insisted that the vehicle was still at the mechanic’s workshop and wanted to lead us there. She however in her discretion accused her driver of being the informant to our investigation because according to her it was her driver who at one time drew her attention when someone suspected to be the mechanic was driving that same car at Wa. This follows after we reliably informed her that our team was not ready to disclose our source of information.  

After a fruitful discussion with Madam Phoebe, she agreed with the team that the vehicle would be back at the facility by Sunday adding that the said vehicle is even due for auctioning meanwhile she was protecting the same vehicle against auctioning thus according to her. 

The team shall subsequently do a follow-up to ensure that the car is back at the facility.

Source: Community Development Show Tumpaani Radio Nadowli.