Reactions trail attack on FMC Lokoja over pregnant women
Different reactions have begun to unfold as a group of protesters on Wednesday attacked the Federal Medical Centre (FMC) in Lokoja, Kogi State over a pregnant woman that was denied access to give birth in the hospital.
The pregnant woman who was said to be in labour and about to give birth was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, but was outrightly rejected by the doctors and nurses in the hospital for not having evidence of convid-19 negative status .
According to an eye witness in the hospital Mr Mustapha Usman explained that the husband of the woman, a Nupe by tribe brought his wife to the hospital around 6 am on Wednesday but was not allowed to enter the labour room and she eventually gave birth in an open space on the ground without any assistance from the nurses and doctors.
Usman said the action of the medical personnel in the hospital might have angered some relatives of the woman who vented their anger by attacking the staff of the hospital with cutlasses and broken bottles.
He added that for more than two months now the doctors and nurses in the hospital have not been attending to patients because of the outbreak of convid-19, a situation he said has led to the death of many as a result of other ailments in the state.
Meanwhile the Kogi State Government through the Commissioner for Information Mr Kingsley Fanwo has urged the people of the State to remain calm as Government will ensure maintenance of law and order.
Fanwo charged the medical authorities in the state to remain committed to their medical profession and responsibilities, assuring that Government will protect them in order to give them the confidence to deliver.
“Healthcare management must never be politicised, Government will carry out further investigations to ascertain the remote causes of the breach of peace by the protesters and also address their fears” he assured.
Effort to speak with the Chief Medical Director Dr Olatunde Alabi proved abortive as all calls put across to him was not successful.
The security personnel at the entrance of the hospital also denied pressman entrance into the premises, saying that they’ve not received the permission for such.
However, the Kogi State chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), in a statement signed by its secretary, Dr Okungbowa Osaretin, condemned the attack on FMC and called on the state and federal government to bring perpetrators to book and provide adequate security for health workers.
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