The Rivers State Governor, Sir. Siminalayi Fubara has lamented that his administration inherited a near comatose health sector that operated without secondary healthcare facilities.
Fubara said it would come to waste if the health of the people was not adequately factored into the development of the state.
The governor disclosed that his administration was intensifying efforts at reviving the near-comatose health sector.
Fubara spoke when he received a delegation of the leadership of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) led by its National President, Dr. Uche Ojinmah, at Government House in Port Harcourt on Friday.
The governor in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Nelson Chukwudi, also confirmed the appointment of Prof. Chizindu Dike Alikor as the substantive Chief Medical Director of Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH).
He said workers and all citizens needed to be healthy to enable them to become productive and contribute their quota to advance governance.
He said: “The governor and his team cannot succeed without your support. That is the truth, and any government that has the interest of its people at heart must pay adequate attention to the provision of quality healthcare services.
“Healthcare goes with development. That is the truth. Your workers need to be healthy to be productive. If you put everything in place and you don’t have good health, then your people will be under-productive.”
Fubara said that as an administration that meant well for the people, it was solving the plethora of issues inherited in the health sector without making noise about it.
He explained that health facilities, particularly those that provided intermediary services were being rebuilt and strengthened, zonal hospitals would be revived while the personnel were adequately being motivated as critical partners in government.
He said his administration approved and implemented promotions for health workers, consequential salary, paying hazard allowances and many other incentives.
He said: “I don’t think when you do what you’re supposed to do, you need to be commended. It is not proper. It is the duty of the government to care for its workers and that is what I’ve done.
“I will put it this way: I want to appreciate the NMA, both national and state chapters, for your support, your patience. I know it wasn’t easy, it has never been easy for them even with what we have done, it’s still not sufficient. We need to do more.
“I want to thank you for your support, and we, on our part, will continue to do our best to ensure that, at least, the relationship between us does not go bad,” the governor said.
In his speech, the National President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr. Uche Ojinmah, said he led the delegation to thank Governor Fubara for what he did to better the lot of medical personnel in Rivers State.
Ojinmah said, that two years ago, he was in Port Harcourt to beg the government then to promote medical workers, increase their salary and pay them hazard allowances plus other incentives but that the last administration ignored him.
He noted that Fubara had, without prompting, attended to those concerns, including employing more personnel and rescuing the NMA Secretariat from crumbling.
Also speaking, State Chairman of NMA, Dr. Ebi Robinson, said they wrote their national body to inform them what they had started enjoying under the leadership of Governor Fubara.
Robinson cited the promotion of personnel, who had stagnated for 10 years, increase in salary payment, gift of utility bus to the association, appointment of their members into several boards, and pledged continued support of the association to the government.
SOURCE: The Nation