The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s comment on overseas treatment as self-indicting and raises public apprehensions on high-level deceits in governance.
The PDP said the comment is ‘ridiculous’, owing to what they say that President Buhari leads on the medal table of persons who patronize foreign hospitals for treatment and even check-ups.
According to a statement by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan on Sunday, the administration of President Buhari has failed to provide adequate healthcare in the country, stressing that he cannot turn around to preach to other citizens against foreign treatment.
“While the PDP does not approve of proliferated foreign medical tourism, especially by leaders and public office holders, our party holds that a leader who has failed to lead by example and whose government has neglected and wrecked our healthcare systems lacks all rectitude to issue directives against foreign treatment”.
“Consequently, the PDP urges President Buhari to show an example by patronizing a Nigerian public hospital on his next medical appointment so that he can experience the healthcare reality that our citizens have been subjected to under his government.”
The party stated that the current administration has not done enough to improve the healthcare sector in the country after the PDP had introduced ‘robust’ programmes.
“Mr. President can then discover that our health system has suffered untold neglect under his watch, leading to dilapidated infrastructure, empty drug shelves, decrepit and worn-out equipment, brain drain and a demoralized workforce worse than his 1983 recollections.
“It is even more disheartening that all the investments and robust programmes of successive PDP administration, including the comprehensive National Strategic Health Development Plan, Saving One Million Lives Initiatives, National Health Insurance Scheme, among others, have been degraded and impaired by the dysfunctional APC administration.
“Nigerians recall that under the PDP administration, new technologies and modern medical equipment were available in most federal medical institutions where cases such as cancer, kidney, heart and brain ailments for which Nigerians are now mostly seeking overseas treatment were effectively handled in our country.”
The party decried the budgetary allocation for healthcare since the APC took over administration in the country, stressing that the N427.3bn captured in the 2020 budget cannot meet the needs of over 186 million Nigerians.
“Under the PDP administration, the dreaded Ebola outbreak was managed without grave consequences. If such a medical emergency, God forbid, breaks out today, it would be devastating to our nation given the poor handling of our healthcare system by the APC administration.
“Even in the 2020 budget, only N427.3bn (4.5% of the budget) is provided for the health need of over 186 million Nigerians. Indeed, this is not the way to go,” the party added.
