Ban oversea treatment for political office holders, govt officials – NMA

The Nigerian Medical Association yesterday called on President Muhammadu Buhari to ban all oversea medical treatment for political office holders and other government officials.

The Nigerian Medical Association, NMA. Lagos State chapter made this call at a press briefing held to mark the Association’s General Meeting/Scientific conference in Lagos .

The Chairman of the NMA Lagos chapter, Dr. Tope Ojo who further urged the president to issue directives to the heads of various government agencies in the country to ensure that the policy is implemented immediately without default by government officials and political office holders.

Ojo stressed that public office holders still use public funds to pay for medical treatment in India, the United Kingdom and the United States for ailments that can be handled effectively in local health facilities.

He noted that the National Health Act made provision for ban on overseas treatment and the refusal of the government to implement it would be tantamount to a violation of the Act.

His words, “The ban on overseas medical treatment should be implemented immediately if the president is committed to eradicating corruption. Why should government pay for a treatment that could have been handled in any Nigerian hospital?”

Ojo also urged the Federal Government to insist that Nigerians should access health care locally to help generate funds to equip hospitals and also recover the billions of Naira that Nigerian patients have paid to develop other countries health care system,” he said.

Speaking, the Lagos NMA Deputy Secretary, Dr. Peter Ogunnubi, similarly called on the Federal Government to accelerate the passage of the Mental Health Bill.

According to Ogunnubi, the absence of the bill had exposed mentally challenged patients to several acts of victimisation and discrimination in the society.

He encouraged government to pay more attention to mental health issues, revealing that, “20 per cent of the Nigerian population is living with one form of mental challenge.”