June 12, 2021

I have never seen anywhere that health services can be totally free, they’re telling me that people who come here can’t pay. I have never declared that this state is going to take over the health fees of anybody

Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers state says his administration had spent N9 billion on upgrading structures and installation of new equipment at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH).

Wike, who disclosed this, on Friday, at the foundation laying ceremony for a Renal Centre at the RSUTH, in Port Harcourt, added that 40 per cent of the state’s 2021 budget was allocated to the provision of quality healthcare delivery, due to the priority placed on the sector.

He reiterated his promise to Rivers people that the best would be provided for them in all sectors, within his capability, because of the mandate they gave him.

Wike, however, announced that the state government would be unable to implement a free medical service programme given the present economic circumstance.

“I have never seen anywhere that health services can be totally free, they’re telling me that people who come here can’t pay. I have never declared that this state is going to take over the health fees of anybody,” he stated.

He commended the Chief Medical Director and his team for their commitment to turnaround the fortunes of the RSUTH, while dismissing the request for a subvention for the institution.

Dr Abiye Sekibo, former Minister of Transport, who performed the ceremony, commended Wike for his achievements in all sectors, particularly in the health sector more than his predecessors.

Sekibo stated that Wike had repositioned the state as a medical tourism destination in Nigeria.

Earlier, Prof. Princewill Chike, Rivers State Commissioner for Health, lauded Wike for his interest in the health of Rivers’ people, noting that the Renal Centre, when completed, will become another landmark project in the health sector that would handle and manage all kidney-related ailments.

In his remarks, Dr. Friday Aaron, RSTUH Chief Medical Director (CMD) commended Wike for approving the centre, while explaining that chronic kidney disease was a major global burden, with an estimated 14 million cases in Nigeria.

According to him, over 240, 000 of the cases required renal replacement therapy in the form of dialysis and renal transplant.

The CMD stated that the building housing the centre, which consisted of two floors that will accommodate the hemodialysis unit to be equipped with eight hemodialysis machines, was expected to be completed in six months. (NAN)