Kaduna state governor Uba Sani has accused his predecessor, Nasir El-Rufai, and other former governors of neglecting the states 32 general hospitals in the state for 20 years.
The governor made the accusation when he hosted stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the 23 LGAs of the state, who paid him homage for the Eid-el-Fitr at the government house in Kaduna on Thursday.
The governor said the situation has made residents travel to neighbouring states for medical care.
According to him, his administration has resolved to remodel, reconstruct and reequip six general hospitals — two in each of the three senatorial zones of the state.
“In the last one month, I have received reports from our deputy governor, who is one of the most prominent, established public health specialists in Nigeria, that our 32 general hospitals in Kaduna as we speak, most of them are not functional,” Sani said.
“Because of that, most of the patients from Kaduna have to travel to some neighbouring states for medical attention.
“This is unacceptable. That is why we have decided to remodel and reconstruct at least six of the 32 general hospitals. This project will be starting by the grace of God on Monday, that is in the next few days.
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“We have to invest in the healthcare, particularly at the secondary healthcare level. It is simply because most of these hospitals I mentioned have not been given attention in the last 20 years, and that is the reason they are in their current situation.”
He also said his administration is also focusing on the education sector.
He said after the abduction of schoolchildren in the Kuriga community, the government embarked on the assessment of all junior secondary schools and primary schools in the state.
Sani said there are over 1,500 schools that need to be fenced in line with the safe school initiative policy.
“For this reason, I approached some well-meaning citizens of the state, particularly in the private sector and as we speak, two of our prominent citizens here in Kaduna, that is Kashim Bukar, the owner of Barbados, as well as Adamu Atta, the owner of Fifth Chucker, have decided to fence 100 schools. We thank them for their effort and support,” he added.
