More than a year after commissioning the multi-billion naira SDG Hospitals located at Igbaja and Oro, in Kwara South Senatorial District of Kwara State, it has continued to rot away, while the community’s Health thirst remains unquenched. Abdulrasheed AKOGUN reports.
Among the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations (UN) in 2015 with the intent of addressing global issues and establishing a sustainable and livable environment for people across the globe, ensuring healthy living and promoting well-being for all is the goal number 3.
The primary objective of the goal was to lower the risk of death for expectant mothers and new moms to 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.
Currently, Nigeria’s maternal mortality rate stands at 1,047 per 100,000 live births.
With the intent of frontally addressing this challenge, the President Muhammadu Buhari administration according to the then (former) Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Alh. Lai Mohammed, the Buhari administration constructed more than 100 Hospitals across the Country.
According to a news report by Leadership Newspaper ( May 10, 2023) during the inauguration of the 80-bed healthcare facility in Oro, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Sustainable Development Goals, SSAP-SDGs, Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire noted that her Office has prioritized interventions with multi-dimensional effects, such as basic healthcare, vocational skills development, and education provision as part of bid to actualize the promise of President Buhari to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.
“Our goal is to create a ripple effect that will impact and improve the lives of many Nigerians as part of the promise. Such interventions include facilities like this one we are commissioning today,” said the SSAP-SDGs.
She noted that the 80-Bed facility was established with a clear mission to improve child health, reduce maternal mortality, and contribute to SDG 3 by accelerating progress towards ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all ages.
“The right to healthcare is a fundamental human right, and access to healthcare is a top priority for the Nigerian government in order to leave no one behind. Ladies and gentlemen, this 80-Bed facility we are commissioning today is dedicated to providing high-quality care and advancing public health, towards a healthier and more equitable future for all.
“The facility is equipped with a theatre, incubators, ventilators, phototherapy machines, patient monitors, children’s beds, examination beds, a 100KVA generator, and powered with solar streetlights; ” Princess Orelope-Adefulire said.
“The establishment of this 80-Bed facility is not only contributing to the achievement of SDG 3, but also positively impacting related SDGs.
This hospital will serve as a catalyst for the overall development of the community, reducing infant and maternal mortality rates, improving access to healthcare services, and enhancing the overall health of the people,” the SSAP-SDGs said while appealing for continuous investments healthcare infrastructure for the advancement of SDG 3 on the health and well-being of the citizens.
She also appealed to the management and staff of the facility to ensure that it is effectively managed and maintained, and that the people of Oro and its environs have access to quality healthcare services.
Also speaking during the commissioning of the 40-Bed facility in Igbaja, Princess Orelope-Adefulire noted that the intervention was another demonstration of the commitment of OSSAP-SDGs to right to health as fundamental human right as has been reiterated by Dr. Tedros, the Director General of the World Health Organization.
“A rights-based approach to health requires that health policy and programs prioritize the needs of those furthest behind first towards greater equity, a principle that has been echoed in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Universal Health Coverage.
This right to health must be enjoyed without discrimination on the grounds of race, age, ethnicity or any other factor. Non-discrimination and equality require states to take steps to redress any discriminatory law, practice or policy,” she said.
The siting of the hospital was expected to bring reliefs not only to Igbaja, but the entire Ireseland of Adanla, Offa-Iresse and other adjourning communities.
However, one year down the line, both Hospitals have failed to live up to its billing, rather than solve and cushion the health challenges of the host and neighbouring communities.
IGBAJA SDG HEALTH CARE CENTRE
Elder Oyin Zubair a community stakeholder, who was also a member of the Hospital commissioning committee said “We appreciate the siting of the 40-bed Hospital in Igbaja township, it has further provided our people and the neighbouring communities choice of which of the numerous available government owned Hospital to go, for their health needs.
“After few months of inactivity, the Hospital has finally started skeletal work, although much more is being expected, so as to put the facility into optimal use.
“On the part of the community, we’ve supported with the employment of 2 cleaners and 2 security each.
“The major problem is staff accommodation, we’ve been housing them at the seminary Guest House at a discounted rate” he added.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a revered community youth leader said, the siting of the Hospital came without proper consultation, because the Igbaja township already has State of the art Health facilities, especially the Cottage Hospital which was recently renovated and well furnished, by the State government.
“Now, the Hospital also suffers proper designation, as we presently don’t know if it’s a Primary Health Facility or a multi-purpose Hospital, lacks accommodation for Doctors and other health workers, the case would have been different if the Hospital has been constructed inside the Cottage Hospital, the issue of accommodation would have been solved, as we have enough space to accommodate them their.
“Also, we’re suspecting that the contractor didn’t supply all equipments as contained in contract documents, because we still have several empty spaces in the Hospital, which calls for suspicion.
“Another key issue is inadequate staffing, an edifice as big as this, can’t boast of 6 permanent health personnel coming daily, the few that we have come from Ilorin twice or at best thrice a week, how reasonable is that” he lamented.
Speaking on the operations of the Hospital, a resident who craved anonymity said “We have 8 health workers all together, we have 1 each of the following; lab scientist, Pharmacist, cashier Doctor, Health Assistant and Health Record, while we have 2 Nurses, all of which come from Ilorin, maximum thrice a week.
“This gigantic Health facility is always under lock and key throughout the weekend” she added.
ORO MOTHER AND CHILD MULTI-PURPOSE HEALTH CENTRE
On the part of the Oro community, a resident of the town, Sikiru Adetiloye, described the siting of the Hospital as its major disadvantage, stressing that a hospital of that nature ought not to be cited outside the town.
He said “The Hospital is outside Oro township and surrounded by thick bushes, how do they think people will prioritize going there over other facilities within the heart of the city?” he added.
Speaking under condition of anonymity, a teacher who works at Muslim High School, Oro, directly opposite the Hospital, and volunteered to speak with this reporter, said “The major problem I’ve observed personally and through interactions with residents, they said the major reason why the Hospital is deserted, is the Nurses and Doctors.
They only come on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, they don’t resume until 10:00am and close by 1:00pm.
“Throughout the weekend, this place is always inaccessible to residents seeking health-care. The only faces you will see on ground daily are security guards and cleaners respectively.
“There have been several times when patients will be rushed down to the Hospital, only to meet the security and cleaners, what can those non-health workers do”
“Another annoying reality is the refusal of the contractor to connect the facility to the national grid, even when service wire is directly at the front of the Hospital” the source alleged.
OFFICE OF THE SENIOR SPECIAL ASSISTANT ON SDG TO THE PRESIDENT FLOUTS FOI LAW
Relying on the Freedom of Information Act, to access the details of the contracts for the construction of the two Hospitals, an FOI request was written to the Office of the Senior Special Assistant on SDGs to the President dated 21/5/2024, received and acknowledged on the same day.
As at the time of filing this report, the FOI request wasn’t honoured by the OSSAP SDG, which is a flagrant disobedience of the FOI ACT.
UITH MISMANAGING FACILITIES, HOST COMMUNITY ALLEGES
Lamenting the lackadaisical attitude of the UITH mismanagement of the facilities, residents of Igbaja and Oro in separate interviews, bemoan the seeming abandonment of the facilities, stressing that “it’s the highest form of mismanagement to inherit this gigantic and state of the art facilities, yet intentionally refuse it to make it function optimally.
Speaking on his disappointing experience, Pastor Isreal Towoju, a neighbour of a pregnant resident said “When I rushed a pregnant woman who was a neighbor there, sometimes around May, we met the absence of health personnel to attend to us, the non-health practitioner I met, said the Doctors who do come from Ilorin operate skeletal services” he claimed.
For 3 consecutive weeks, Fresh Insight’s reporter visited the Hospital on four different days, and on each visit, no Health personnel was met on ground.
It was discovered that among other things, lack of access to electricity, water supply, non-fencing of the Doctors’ quarters, and Health worker’s apathy to work has all combined to sniff the expected life out of the facility, among others.
After several weeks of trying, albeit unsuccessfully to speak with Prof. Abudullahi Dasilva Yussuf, the Chief Medical Director, UITH, wherein numerous calls placed across to his mobile phone were neither answered nor text messages acknowledged.
On Tuesday, 25th June, Mrs E.O. Ajiboye Head , Corporate Affairs, UITH in her office was confronted with discoveries about the activities of the Hospitals.
While denying the allegations, Ajiboye said “Hope you’re aware that the two hospitals were handed over to us, as we were not the ones that started the project.
“Most of the questions especially about the contracting will best be answered by the executing Agency, in this case, the SDG office.
“Upon its handing over to us, as one of our health centres, we designated that of Oro as Mother and Child multi-purpose Centre while that of Igbaja is Health Care Centre” she added.
On request of the inventory handed over to the management of UITH, she declined answer, asking the reporter to go and get the details from the SDG office.
She said “This is different from hospitals constructed by us. There is a limit to information we can avail you as a journalist, because you’re not an auditor.
“Whatever information you want should be sourced from the SDG office, the only information we can give you here, is the operational status and staff strength of the Hospital” she added
When asked to provide the operational status and staff strength, she said “For Oro with 80 bed spaces, we have posted one Doctor, 5 Nurses, Admin officers, cleaners etc, so we have a total of 20 personnel in Oro. While for Igbaja which is a 40 bed, we have about 15 personnel” she said.
When challenged on the absenteeism of the purportedly posted workers and the skeletal operations of the Hospitals as alleged by members of the community, she said “We are not aware of such, we’ve posted them there and they’re working there everyday, anything to the contrary isn’t known to me” she denied.
Also on the allegation that the personnel do come from Ilorin and return daily, she denied and said “in fact the communities are the ones accommodating them, so it can’t be true that they go to the Hospital and come back to Ilorin on a daily basis” she submitted.
Reacting to the status of the two Hospitals, Barr. Titilope Anifowoshe, a social commentator and Community Development Advocate, lamented the realities of the twin Hospitals, stressing that something urgent must be made to reset it.
The Igbonla, Irepodun local government area of Kwara State born lawyer said “It’s beautiful to have these edifices in Kwara South, but we must go beyond the aesthetics.
“As a community, we need to collectively ask ourselves: what follow-up actions have we taken to ensure these facilities truly serve our people?
“The reality is, pregnant women still struggle to access medical care, with only a tiny window of 9 hours out of 168 hours a week.
“They must navigate treacherous terrain to reach healthcare services, while medical practitioners lack decent accommodations. This is a far cry from the intended impact of the World Health-backed facilities.
“We urgently need the intervention of SSA SGDs Erelu, the Federal and State Ministries of Health to address these glaring issues. It’s unconscionable to have modern facilities yet tolerate high mortality rates.
“Absentee doctors and nurses must be held accountable for abandoning their duties and wasting valuable resources. We owe it to ourselves, our children, and our future to ensure these facilities truly serve their purpose” she submitted.
This story was produced with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development Inclusivity and Accountability Project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation.
