Africa
Shameless Nigeria: Waiting For China, UK, Germany and India
By Adeola Aderounmu,Thy Glory O' Nigeria.., 1/8/19
Aug 1, 2019 - 1:15:04 PM

A former Nigerian president, one Musa Yar Adua  was transported round the world because of kidney problems and he eventually died in transit and was bundled home.

For how long will this continue? What is wrong with the black people in Nigeria? What exactly is wrong with us?

The topic l am about to address is on medical tourism and l have written about it on several occasions before under different headlines like “Let’s Go And die, Abroad”. A simple search on my blog with the word “hospital” will reveal that this topic is close to my heart.

In the 1950s, Nigeria has arguably the best medical facilities in Africa and one of the best medical deliveries in the world.

Fast forward to 2019, Nigerians are dying like cockroaches and rats as a result of absence of basic medical facility. Rural and localized health care have been thrown to the thrash.

Poverty has ravaged Nigeria. My term, “mass poverty” has now been adopted by the WHO and other institutions and renamed “multidimensional poverty”.

An irrespective of your status, serious illness in Nigeria may become terminal and end your life even when medical sciences have solutions or medications that can prolong your life.

There are other variables that interplay with the situations highlighted above that determine the outcomes of various troubles with our health situations in Nigeria. For example, an accident may lead to death even when the accident is not life threatening.

Nigerians have now resolved to the social media mainly Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp to carry out funding for sick members of their families and close friends. In very many situations, sick people are left to die at home or in some ill-equipped medical facilities where the sick person is primarily responsible for procurement of medicine and payment for treatment.

Rich people travel abroad to China, England, Germany and India amongst other places overseas in order to receive treatments for various categories of illnesses. Nigeria’s corrupt politicians travel primarily to UK for treatment. The list is endless of where our politicians and rich people end up when they are sick.

As you are aware, Buhari is an out-patient in a London hospital and he had been a dictator in the early 80s and now a president since the last 4 years.

In my opinion, Nigerian politicians deserved to be arrested and sentenced to life time imprisonment starting with Buhari. I do not understand why in the last 4 years for example, he could not revitalize the health sector so that he can stay in Nigeria to receive medical help for his ailments.

I do not understand why the rich people in Nigeria are so foolish that they cannot use their wealth to build hospitals with world class facilities so that they can stay in Nigeria rather than risk long flights to reach help abroad.

I do not understand why Nigerians can come together only to protest against rape and not against poor medical conditions in the country. I do not understand why we have to raise funds on WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook for every sick person in Nigeria who need specialized help.

Nigerian doctors are scattered around the world and performing miracles every day in various hospitals around the world. The same is for our nurses. But back home in Nigeria, we have stubbornly refused to revitalize our health sector.

It is not only our health sector that has suffered. Invariably all aspects of our lives have suffered due to the impacts of politics. In 1966 the military coups derailed Nigeria and led us to a civil war. Some people said it was a genocide.

But we are under a system of government that has brought the dominance of the Fulanis and a very obvious failed system of governance.

What is the significance of all our brilliant minds when we cannot disown this useless system that has brought us to our knees, a system that has promoted genocide, terrorism and outright elevation of poverty beyond comprehensible proportion.

The unitary system was/is a free fall from our glorious heights in the 1950s to probably the most useless country to be born or live today.

It is very disgusting how we carry on hoping that things will get better whereas they are getting worse.

In recent weeks, billionaire businessman Otedola donated 50 000 dollars to former Nigerian international Christian Chukwu so he could receive treatment abroad. Christian is healthy now and back to Nigeria. Several people did not make it. They died at home or in a dilapidated Nigerian clinic/hospital.

I know a young man whose live is now hanging in the balance. He needs millions of naira to get to China for treatment. Funds are being raised on the social media, again! It does not have to be this way. There is a government in Lagos state. Why are kidney problems and other illnesses not treatable in Nigeria?

What would it take to divert bullion vans from the homes of politicians to investment in our health? What are we supposed to do so that we can be treated with dignity in our country, on our ancestral home?