Africa-Press – Liberia. President George Manneh Weah has dedicated one of his signature projects, the 14 Military Hospital in Schefflin, Margibi County, saying his vision is to develop Liberia to the maximum extent possible during his presidency.
“I have a vision and a mission for Liberia. My vision is to develop Liberia to the maximum extent possible during my Presidency. And my mission is to complete every project that I embark upon in that process,” said Mr. Weah while opening and dedicating Liberia’s first military hospital Wednesday, 1 September 2021.
Mr. Weah said he considered undertaking the military hospital project after being informed in 2018 that a Liberian soldier who was serving on the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali had been taken to Senegal for emergency treatment after being badly wounded in 2017 on the mission.
He suggested that the intent for the construction of a state-of-the-art Medical Center for the use of Liberian Military personnel, their families and dependents, and other Liberian citizens is to ensure that wounded soldiers’ families would not have to travel to another country to visit their loved ones.
Mr. Weah broke ground in May 2018 for the construction of the 14 Military Hospital, and with the assistance of the Engineering Company of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL), construction began for the project and was completed after a little over three years of work.
While it was still being constructed, President Weah recalled that the 14 Military Hospital became the perfect isolation center when Coronavirus broke out in Liberia and played a major role in the country’s battle with the pandemic because of its location away from the general population.
Through their respective Embassies near Monrovia, the Governments and People of India, China, and the United States over the years made invaluable contributions to the success of the project.
“Today, it is now complete and ready for operation. Fully equipped and staffed with a dedicated and qualified team of medical professionals, it will become the central health care facility of the Armed Forces of Liberia, and with its 150-bed capacity, will begin to provide in-patient services as well as outpatient services to our men and women in arms, and their families,” President Weah said.
President Weah noted that in the near future, the 14 Military Hospital will provide other specialized services for the general Liberian population and that these services will include certain emergency medical and surgical procedures such as plastic surgeries, and burn care, as well as general surgery.
“It will become the center of healthcare excellence, providing quality services and comfort for all Liberians,” he said.
He said he is both proud and happy to see that his dream has been realized, and in record time, describing the 14 Military Hospital is one of his signature projects.
Additionally, President Weah announced on the occasion that one of his signature projects is the development of Bali Island, explaining that there are many who doubt his ability to bring this project to fruition. “But these skeptics do not discourage nor distract me from my mission,” he added.
