Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has been called upon to be up and doing following allegations of apparent failure of the healthcare system to fulfill its primary purpose of saving lives in the state.

Health practitioners in the state have also been alleged of negligence and deliberate mismanagement, prompting calls for urgent intervention.

This was coming after a child allegedly died in Offa General Hospital due to seemly unprofessionalism and short-staff over the weekend.
This call was made by Comrade Salaudeen A. Lukman, popular as Eluku Omo Adugbo, the Peoples Democratic Party candidate for Ojomu Balogun Constituency in the 2023 general elections on March 27, 2024.

He criticized the Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq-led for what many perceive as its role in converting hospitals into morgues. He added that the essence of a hospital, as a place for medical care and healing, seems to have been lost in the state, leaving citizens vulnerable and without adequate healthcare services.

He cited recent incidents, such as the tragic loss of a child at Offa General Hospital due to alleged shortages of manpower and neglect, have highlighted the dire situation facing Kwara's healthcare system. Similar cases of medical emergencies gone unaddressed have become all too common, raising questions about the competence and efficiency of those tasked with managing the state's healthcare infrastructure.

Hon. Comr Salahudeen A Lukman, speaking on behalf of concerned citizens, has called on the Kwara State Government to declare a state of emergency in the healthcare sector. Urgent measures, including manpower and facility upgrades, are deemed essential to prevent further loss of innocent lives.

He went on to propose privatization of hospitals in Kwara if the state government is unable to effectively manage them. This suggestion comes amidst growing frustration over what many perceive as the systematic failure of the healthcare system to meet the needs of the people.

Conclusively, he suggested the transformation of the Kwara State College of Health Technology Offa into a State University of Medical Science. This move, he said, aims to address the shortage of medical professionals in the state and ensure that adequate training facilities are available to meet the growing demand for healthcare services.

Governor Abdulrasak is urged to reconsider his priorities and take decisive action to safeguard the lives of Kwarans. Failure to address these issues could result in further unnecessary loss of life and continued dissatisfaction with the state of healthcare in Kwara.

HIS PRESS STATEMENT IS REPRODUCED BELOW
A HOSPITAL OR A MORGUE: SAVE KWARIANS FROM AVOIDABLE DEATHS - PRIVATIZE KWARA HOSPITALS IF STATE GOVERNMENT CAN'T MANAGE THEM EFFICIENTLY ANY LONGER.


In a sane climate, the Kwara State Government, Ministry of Health, and Kwara State Hospital Management Board should be sued for negligence and deliberate conversion of Kwara Hospitals to morgues. The literal meaning and purpose of a hospital, a healthcare facility expected to help citizens medically, have been defeated in Kwara state today under Governor Abdul Rahman Abdulrasak. Many Kwarans who take their loved ones to the general hospital often end up in the morgue as the hospital services have degenerated and deteriorated to the extent that saving lives or rescuing medical emergencies has become almost impossible.

A case study of Offa General Hospital over the last weekend: a child was lost due to alleged shortage of manpower, negligence, and poor service culture in the hospital. This is one of many similar cases Kwarans experience on a daily basis in the general hospitals across the state. Why should Kwarans pay so much for the incompetence of a few in charge of health ministry affairs of the state?

It's on this ugly trend that I call on the Kwara State Government to, as a matter of urgency, declare a state of emergency in the state health sector. Manpower and facility upgrades are highly needed in the hospitals, particularly the Offa General Hospital. The state may privatize the hospital if they cannot effectively manage the sector, instead of constituting the official murdering of innocent sick citizens who unknowingly patronize the hospital for care, unaware that the hospitals are mere edifices without adequate manpower and facilities, now a morgue.
Another reason I advise the Kwara State Government to look into upgrading the Kwara State College of Health Technology Offa into a State University of Medical Science is to boost manpower development for health-related professionals in the state. This will go a long way in increasing the number of medical doctors and other medical professionals in the state while facilities are upgraded.

Kwara does not lack teachers as much as medical doctors. Moving to convert state colleges of Education to universities of education is more or less a misplacement of priorities.

Governor Abdulrasak should reconsider this action and save Kwarans from avoidable deaths caused by Kwara Hospitals in the state.
Signed,
Hon. Comr Salahudeen A Lukman ELUKU OMO ADUGBO"