Thought Leadership

Some Lives are more valuable than others…

2 Mins read
Thought Leadership

Some Lives are more valuable than others…

2 Mins read

by ndubuisi edeoga

Eric Arthur Blair, some of you would know him as “George Orwell” said it years ago in his famous book Animal Farm, “all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others”. This is even more pertinent to our Nigeria of today.

The headline in dailies “Ex-Gov Turaki to be flown to Germany” Thisdayonline. The paper goes on to say that the patient was in a stable condition at the national Hospital Abuja Intensive Care Unit.

The ex-governor even had the choice of going to Singapore but the president in his infinite wisdom “primus inter pares” stepped in to help! “our president was said to have preferred Germany because of the country’s expertise in treating accident injuries”. We must ask ourselves why our President was so concerned. This Honourable Senator of the Federal Republic spent eight disastrous years as the governor of Jigawa. Under his watch, the state remained steeped in underdevelopment while he set records as a gallivanting and visionless governor travelling the globe seeking “foriegn investors”. He became famous when EFCC finally caught up with him and he was reduced to a crybaby as the preferred charges were read out loud. But this is not really the essence of this piece.

On the same day there was a story goes on to tell us about 37 people “lesser animals” that were involved in another series of accidents with 24 people dying at the site and 10 people on the danger list in hospitals in Jebba.

I did not see any mention of the president sending a message of condolence to these “lesser families” or recommending treatment for them at the country of his choice.

Fast forward to the United States, the recent shooting of 13 people in New York, got a presidential mention, even when the president was out of the country….that is what leadership feels like….

In related stories in the Vanguard newspaper, a 60-year-old got her knee replaced in a Nigeria hospital, the surgery was led by a Belgian Dr. Jean-Luc Burrette. While speaking at the occasion Commissioner for Health, Dr. Samson Parker said “the state used to fly such cases abroad at a cost of about N10 million, but said a lot would be saved by carrying out the operation locally, since it cost between N500, 000 and N700, 000”

What would be the cost of medical treatment for ex-governor Turaki in Germany? Your guess is as good as mine. Who is footing the bill, your guess is as good as mine? What’s the criterion for choosing who goes to Germany for medical care, your guess is as good as mine?

The current Bill sponsored by Mr. Bassey Etim representing Uyo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives calling for an amendment to the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) Act and adding free medical treatment for accident victims on Nigerian roads.
According to Mr. Etim “the bill seeks to amend the FRSC Act to include the free treatment of accident victims because most survivors of road crashes often die due to lack of proper medical care. He said it was not enough for FRSC officials to evacuate accident victims and dump them in hospitals, adding that with the planned law, the Federal Government would foot such bills to enable the victims get proper attention. The lawmaker decried the current situation where accident victims are dumped in hospitals and left to die”. Just like the 10 people on the danger list in Jebba.

We representing the “lesser people “ of Nigeria should make another amendment to Mr. Etim’s bill, let’s amend the bill to read free treatment for all accident victims in Germany since they have the best trauma centers in the world according to our president “primus inter pares”…

In Germany we trust! Long live Senator Turaki!

http://www.nigeriahealthwatch.com/

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has…Margaret Mead

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