The Minister of Health, Mr Kwaku Agyeman-Manu, has taken his annual leave to rest, after very busy and brisk schedules in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The minister, who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Dormaa Central in the Bono Region, had made the request to go on leave to the Presidency some weeks ago to ensure that the two-week leave coincided with Parliament going on recess.

A source at the Ministry of Health who disclosed this to the Daily Graphic said the minister would also use the opportunity to be in touch with his constituents and his family, whom he had not seen for a while.

The leave was granted by the Chief of Staff, Mrs Akosua Frema Osei-Opare.

It indicated that although the minister had commenced his leave, he met President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who had started his two-day regional tour of the Bono Region.

The source said after the President’s tour, the minister would meet his constituents and also have time with his family, as well as take a rest from the busy schedules occasioned by the fight against the COVID-19.

During the first wave of the COVID-19 in 2020, Mr Agyeman-Manu, who had been at the forefront of the fight against the pandemic, contracted the virus but recovered.

Parliament

Last Friday, the ad-hoc committee of Parliament that probed the contract agreements for the purchase and supply of the Sputnik-V vaccine urged the Minister of Finance to take steps to recover monies paid to Sheikh Ahmed Dalmook Al Maktoum.

However, an attempt by the Minority in Parliament to push for a motion to sanction and remove the Minister of Health, Mr Agyemang-Manu, from office over the purchase of the vaccine was blocked last Friday when the Second Deputy Speaker, Mr Andrew Asiamah Amoako, deferred the ruling on the motion until the next meeting of Parliament.