The Bauchi State government has been urged to swing into action over the reported diversion of free drugs across Primary Healthcare Centers (PHCs) in the state.
A recent undercover investigation by WikkiTimes exposed that healthcare workers were conniving with vendors to divert and sell free and subsidized medicines in PHCs across the state.
The call for Governor Bala Mohammed-led government and other relevant stakeholders to wage war against the diversion and sale of free drugs came during an anti-corruption radio programme, PUBLIC CONSCIENCE, produced by the Progressive Impact Organization for Community Development, PRIMORG, Wednesday in Abuja.
Speaking during the radio programme, the Publisher and Editor in Chief of WikkiTimes, Haruna Mohammed, revealed that malaria, river blindness, sickle cell anemia, and birth control drugs continue to be diverted and sold by health officials at PHCs, leaving patients with the difficulty of paying from their pockets.
Mohammed, while blaming the persistent corruption at Bauchi PHCs on the failure of the system to punish culprits, stressed that given the amount of resources spent on equipping and revitalizing PHCs, the state governor, relevant agencies, and residents should be interested in tackling corruption headlong.
“I think everybody in Bauchi should be interested in this because the government is spending a lot to not only rehabilitate healthcare centers but also to equip them. Many people should be interested. A lot of stakeholders, the journalists, the Primary Healthcare Development Agency, the Drugs Management Agency, everybody should be interested.
“When we lack a system that deliberately lacks reward and punishment, we will fundamentally have a problem, which is evident here.
“As a nation, changing the behaviour of our local people is extremely important, and we have to continue to do that,” Mohammed advised.
He said from the investigations, the unfortunate diversion of free and subsidized drugs by health officials cuts across the 20 local government areas of the state, noting that the Bauchi government is fully aware of the corruption rocking PHCs in the state.
On his part, public and global health equity advocate, Dr. Ifeanyi Nsofor blamed the raging corruption at PHCs nationwide on political interference on leadership at the local government level and the failure of the system to punish corrupt elements.
Nsofor, who maintained that the Primary Healthcare system in Nigeria would continue to be dysfunctional if elections were not conducted at local councils, emphasized that the system is highly threatened by impunity.
On how PHCs across Nigeria can be strengthened, Nsofor said: “Everything rises and falls on leadership.
“We need to make local councils functional. We can’t have governors coming in, dissolving local councils, and appointing sole administrators. We must go through that electoral process, make sure that people vote for the candidates of their choice to these local councils, and have those local councils provide primary health care. You cannot provide primary health care without partnership with the communities and other groups.”
Besides clamoring for increased budgetary allocation in the health sector, he urged the government to ensure that health insurance works in Nigeria.
Public Conscience is a syndicated weekly anti-corruption radio program used by PRIMORG to draw government and citizens’ attention to corruption and integrity issues in Nigeria.
The program has the support of the MacArthur Foundation.
