Musician advocates the setting up of Survival Fund

Accra, March 22, GNA - Mr Bob Roy, a musician and restaurateur, on Monday proposed the establishment of a special alternative fund, to finance national health delivery and other social services.

He advocated a voluntary weekly contribution of between 1,000 cedis and 200 cedis a day, by all Ghanaians, including babies, into the fund, which he said would benefit every Ghanaian, and not exempt anyone. Speaking at a press conference in Accra, Mr Roy said the Fund, would not have any legal backing to compel people to contribute into it, but run on the same lines as the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). Contributions into the fund could be paid at the Post Offices, and Government would manage it if it took it up.

But Mr Roy, who gave no time span to wait on the Government, said he himself would take it up, and collaborate with other Ghanaians to make the fund work, if Government did not take it up.

Mr Roy said the fund was part of a larger plan, which he called Survival Plan for Ghana.

He said a daily contribution of 200 cedis, which he called "pure water money," by every Ghanaian would rake in substantial revenue to finance social services and generate employment for all able-bodied Ghanaians. Mr Roy, also a preacher, said Ghana would go through the hard times Jesus Christ predicted, and the only way out was to adopt the Survival Plan and mobilise human and material resources for survival in these "last days."

He itemised four objectives of the Plan.

These are to help in the establishment of health insurance for the survival of all without exemption; help to increase food production through the establishment of national or citizen farms with preservation facilities; creation of jobs for able-bodied Ghanaians and the establishment of creativity centre for graduates from the universities and polytechnics to put acquired scientific know-how into practice.

He called on the Government to enhance irrigation agriculture, and suggested further that a number of tractors, which Government recently took delivery of, should be sent to the Afram Plains for increased agricultural output.

Mr Roy said Ghanaians should take national development into their own hands rather than relying on foreign investment.