Adeleke’s Demise: Osun Doctors Ascribe Death To Poor Health Facility

By Abdulrofiu Agboola

The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Osun State Chapter has attributed the death of Late Senator Isiaka Adeleke to lack of health facilities in all the health centres in the state.

The Chairman of the association, Dr. Tokunbo Olajumoke disclosed this while addressing journalists during a peaceful protest staged to register their plights in the hands of the state government concerning the unfavourable condition of service and poor state of health centres across the state.

CityMirrorNews  recalled that the late senator Isiaka Adeleke died recently after a brief illness.

Dr Olajumoke, who led other medical doctors for a peaceful protest decried the state government’s system of modulated salary, insisted that the general poor state of medical arrangement in the state solely responsible for the late senator’s death.

According to him” it was because there was nothing in the General Hospital in Ede town where the first civilian Governor of the State would have been taken to when he was ill that made him died so cheaply.

“The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) is deeply concerned about the continued decadence in the health sector and the poor treatment of health workers in Osun State, hence the urgent need to bring to the public notice this worrisome and unimaginable handling of the sector and the health care givers by the state government.

“Despite the enthusiasm of our members in the state to render health care services when the conditions of service delivery in our hospitals have gone from bad to worse, the government of Osun Sate have consistently incapacitated health workers by her vicious and unscrupulous remuneration policies.

“We had a protest last month but there was no response or discussion. The Government said it has spent N10 billion  on health sector which is a lie. If you go to any of our hospital, the best you can get is paracetamol. Our salary has been mutilated and doctors cannot do half work, doctors should be treated differently in the State and pay full salary.

“When our affiliates were on strike last year, well meaning Nigerians appealed to them and they resumed work but eight months now and their salaries have still not been paid. Government is still withholding their salary.

“We ought to have started strike but for our unalloyed love for our patients. If this doesn’t work, we are still coming up with other strategies. Government should improve the health sector, the masses are dying on daily basis.

“Why didn’t they take the late Senator Isiaka Adeleke to the general hospital in Ede, that is not even far from his house? It is because they knew there was nothing there and they had to bring him to Osogbo. His death was too cheap.

“There is this new revised CONMESS which has stipulated the salary and tax regime for doctors but instead of the State Government to follow the salary guideline as a whole, they rather stick to the taxation aspect.

“Why should we be fully taxed when we are still collecting half salary? We implore well meaning Nigerians to intervene, if not, there will be total collapse in the State of Osun.” He added.
The procession for the protest took off from Ladoke Akintola Teaching Hospital (Lautech) to the popular Ola Iya junction before heading to the palace of Aja- Oja of Osogbo, Oba Jimoh Olanipekun.

The aggrieved Medical doctors were armed with placards with various inscriptions such as “Stop this Genocide against doctors. “Half Salaries are illegal, Paris Fund out to Make a Difference. Enough is Enough. “Osun Doctors say no to Obnoxious Taxation. “Save Osun State from Doctors’ Brain Drain. “Fractionated Salary Ko Le Work” among others.
In his reaction, the Commissioner for information and strategy, Mr Lani Baderinwa said the Government is aware of the situation on ground concerning civil service structure, and that the Government is making frantic efforts to address the situation, adding that there was never a time that their case was not taken into consideration.

He said doctors should have patience like their counterparts in the civil service and that the Ministry of Finance in the State was  working on the payment of their outstanding salaries.

Baderinwa therefore assured the medical personnel the conscious move by the government to make them smile again.