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Lawrence Bajah – Abuja
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has said the Administration will help alleviate the challenge of residential accommodation confronting doctors, especially in the Satellite Towns.
Malam Bello said that efforts were being made to provide housing for the duration of their stay in the satellite areas.
The Minister stated this when he received a delegation of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), FCT chapter, led by its chairman, Dr. Charles Ugwuanyi on a courtesy visit to the FCTA, on Tuesday.
He said: “Many of your members are staff of the FCT Administration. So for all intents and purposes, we are all partners in progress. I wish you all the best and I assure you that the FCT Administration will continue to dialogue with you and see whatever we can do to provide very high standard Medicare to residents.”
“Housing is a big challenge. What we are now doing, especially for the hospitals outside of Abuja, is ensuring that any doctor or nurse or senior medical personnel that gets posted to a satellite facility, should be able to get accommodated so that by the time you are done with your posting, you just move on and the next doctor goes in. Gradually, we hope that will support you in accommodation”.
Malam Bello who welcomed the association’s proposed medical outreach to all the Area Councils in the Territory pledged the support of the FCTA for the success of the programme.
In a statement issued to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday, by Anthony Ogunleye, the Director of press (Office of the FCT Minister), the Minister commended the NMA for the support and cooperation the FCTA has enjoyed from the association while also urging the members to always be good ambassadors of the country in the discharge of their duties wherever they find themselves.
“The NMA in the FCT is an association that I’ve worked very closely with. I think I have worked with about four NMA Chairmen within the course of my two terms as Minister and the NMA has really proven to be a very strong and well-committed stakeholder in the FCT.
“Abuja is gradually and surely becoming a centre of medical excellence. The Afreximbank for instance is building a very big centre of 500-bed capacity medical centre to cater for West Africa. The first phase is 200 beds and we are supporting them. They have already started work and quite a few other private sector companies.”
Earlier, the NMA FCT chapter chairman, Dr Charles Ugwuanyi had said that the visit was to introduce the newly elected executive committee of the association to the Minister, while also commending the Minister for the Administration’s continued support for the FCT NMA.
Dr Ugwuanyi also solicited more support from the FCTA as the new executive carries out programmes aimed at bringing quality healthcare to residents of the FCT.
He also proposed the establishment of an all-encompassing medical city as part of efforts to make the FCT a medical tourism hub.
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