June 16, 2020
By Ijendu Iheaka
Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL) has called on President Mohammadu Buhari, 36 State governors, and other stakeholders to fix Nigeria’s health infrastructure which Coronavirus pandemic exposed as deficient.
COSEYL made the call in a statement signed by its President-General, Chief Goodluck Ibem and Secretary-General, Comrade Kanice Igwe and made available to our Correspondent in Aba on Tuesday.
The group also charged Nigerians to exact consistent and reasonable pressure on Nigerian leadership to ensure they reformed and rebuilt the nation’s health sector.
They noted that most Nigerian politicians after three or four months of global lockdowns had remained within Nigeria because Europe, America and Asia stopped foreigners from visiting.
COSEYL said some politicians and other notable Nigerians inability to go on their usual medical vacations abroad, exposed them to local hospitals with obsolete equipment which had resulted in death of some of them.
The body said that the deaths of some prominent Nigerians/politicians not resulting from direct COVID-19 infections were avoidable had the country had well equipped and functional hospitals to serve the people.
"The question we must ask all our leaders; President, Governors, Senators, House of Representatives Members, First Class Traditional Rulers, House of Assembly Members and top clergymen is this;
“Had COVID-19 been restricted only to our territory while Europe, Asia and America were free of it, would we have seen you around all these while?
"Millions and if not billions are pumped into our health system every budget year, but we only have semi dead health centres to show for it.
“Must we remain like this and do nothing after our experience with COVID-19 that's yet to even die down? l
"You can see the consequences in this COVID-19 pandemic. It is high time we started treating those who messed our health sectors up like murderers because that's what they're.
“They are making it impossible for our doctors and nurses to prove themselves here and save lives of citizens”, they said.
COSEYL praised Nigerian doctors and other health workers for their performances in the face of COVID-19 under poor working environment, and remuneration.
The group which condemned the wasteful spending of current Nigerian leaders in the face of dilapidated health infrastructure urged Nigerians to stop the leaders from using foreign hospitals at the detriment of Nigerians.
It urged the people to meet their town leaders, traditional rulers, representatives both in federal and state legislatures and to speak to them them where necessary through priests, pastors and imams.
"Write it on placards, display it in church services for the priests to see and speak out, and in mosques display it to the president and his team, to your representatives whenever they come to tell you about political ambitions
"Display it to your governors whenever they boast of what they've done, display it to your wealthy brothers to remember that as they're spending money building hotels, private universities and churches, let them know that hospitals are also wonderful investments.
"Demand just one thing which is overhauling of your major hospitals and immediate improvement of all of them.
“We cannot watch ourselves die like chickens when we know we have a solution; after COVID-19, other diseases like malaria are still with us”, they said.
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