By Paul Effiong, Abuja
House of Representatives has called on the federal government to immediately declare a state of emergency in the health sector, in order to address the critical situation at the University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan, Oyo State.
The House also urged the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelebu to ensure that immediate proactive steps are taken towards the restoration of power to the hospital to enable it function effectively.
It also urged the Minister of Health, Mohammed Pate to provide a comprehensive plan to address the situation.
These followed a motion of urgent public importance moved during Wednesday’s plenary by Afolabi Afuape.
In his lead debate, Afuape informed that UCH is a foremost and critical healthcare institution that provides essential medical services in Nigeria.
The House also raised concerns that the healthcare institution had been thrown into
persistent blackout for almost three months by Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, IBEDC, over a whooping electricity bill of N495 million.
The lawmakers lamented that the precarious situation had severely impacted the institution’s ability to render adequate medical services to the people, resulting in avoidable loss of lives and livelihood, as well as emotional distress to many Nigerians.
The green chamber lamented that the situation had become embarrassing to the extent that relatives of patients now bring power generators and solar inverter appliances to the hospital.
They maintained that the ugly situation had taken a toll on the psychological and emotional well-being of Nigerians, eroding trust in government’s ability to provide basic healthcare.
